Tomb Effigy of Ermengol VII in the Cloisters, Sept. 2007

Tomb Effigy of Ermengol VII, 1320–1340
Spanish; From the Church of Santa María de Bellpuiq de las Avellanes, Catalonia
Limestone, polychromy; H. 120 in. (305 cm), L. 80 in. (203 cm)
The Cloisters Collection, 1928 (28.95)

Elaborate tombs honored the deceased and their family and invited prayers for their souls. This was one of a group of tombs made for the counts of Urgell in the Church of Santa María de Bellpuiq de las Avellanes. Mourners gather behind the effigy of Count Ermengol VII of Urgell (d. 1194). The relief above shows a priest conducting the funeral service, and still higher the soul of the deceased is borne heavenward by angels. The effigy rests on an elaborate sarcophagus with depictions of Christ and the apostles carried by three lions. Traces of the original paint remain. The tomb comprises fragments from different monuments; for example, the effigy slab is too large for the sarcophagus, which was originally made to be inset into a wall.

Text from: www.metmuseum.org/toah/ho/07/eusi/ho_28.95.htm