Morning at the Cluny

Saturday morning dawned with a bit of drizzle, but it had stopped by the time we left the apartment. We hopped on the Metro, our new favorite thing, and found our way to the Cluny stop.

 

Not only is this the museum devoted to the Middle Ages, but it is located partly on top of old Roman baths and the sixteenth century abbey of Cluny.

 

Note the scallop shells on the wall. I know, from Frances Temple's The Ramsay Scallop, that this was a symbol of pilgrims. The hollyhock was just a lovely bonus.

 

This statue was from an exhibit of Slovakian medieval art on display, as was the illuminated manuscript below.

 

Of course, the Cluny is most famous for the Lady and the Unicorn set of tapestries. They are as wonderful as you might expect. We didn't take any pictures, but someone else did.


The museum also houses exquisite statues, altarpieces, vestments, armor, and pews. In the end, a surfeit of Jesus for the likes of me, but it's mixed with Roman elements that generously include a Celtic god here and there, to say nothing of astrological symbols. The Romans were nothing if not practical.