The Middle Ages of the 19th century

In the wake of the revolutionary upheavals, the 19th century rediscovered the Middle Ages, whilst reinterpreting them. This century, which fostered a romantic reverie and witnessed significant technological advances and the building of major collections, drew inspiration from the Middle Ages by producing copies, pastiches, composite works and forgeries. The exhibition facilitates comparisons, juxtaposing certain medieval objects with their 19th-century ‘echoes’.

The focus is on the fine arts, in their medieval sense: gold and silverware, enamels, ivories and precious textiles. These fields indeed saw a proliferation of technical rediscoveries in the 19th century. These cultural and artistic phenomena emerged from the 1820s and 1830s right up to the eve of the First World War, spanning roughly a century. Collectors, creative and restoration workshops, as well as forgers, were the key players in this rapidly expanding art market, centred on Paris, which was then regarded as the capital of the fine arts.

The exhibition "The 19th-Century Middle Ages: Creations and Forgeries in the Decorative Arts" is organised by the Musée de Cluny – Musée national du Moyen Âge and GrandPalaisRmn. Curatorship is entrusted to Christine Descatoire, Chief Curator at the Musée de Cluny, and Frédéric Tixier, Senior Lecturer in Medieval Art History at the University of Lorraine.

The exhibition has been organised with the special support of the Musée du Louvre. 

This exhibition is supported by L’École des Arts Joailliers,  whose mission is to promote jewellery culture to the widest possible audience; and by The New York Medieval Society.