The V&A has Successfully raised the £2 Million Cost to acquire a Rare 12th-century Walrus Ivory Carving

The intricate carving is heralded as one of the finest and most important examples of English Romanesque ivory carving to survive today.

The Reviewing Committee on the Export of Works of Art and Objects of Cultural Interest, which is supported by Arts Council England, helped keep the exceptional carving in the UK by recommending a delay in granting an export licence.

The acquisition is generously supported by a £700,000 grant from the National Heritage Memorial Fund, and a grant of £350,000 from Art Fund, as part of a national public appeal which included support from grant-making organisations, individuals, members of the V&A Director’s Circle and Young Patrons’ Circle, V&A Members and those who left a legacy gift in their Will.

The successful acquisition of the Deposition from the Cross will see the sculpture enter the V&A's permanent collection and return to public display in V&A South Kensington's Medieval and Renaissance galleries later this year, having previously been on long-term loan to the museum for 40 years from 1982 to 2022.

The sculpture will be re-united with the only known surviving piece believed to be of the same ensemble, a fragmentary ivory carving of Judas at the Last Supper, which is reported to have been discovered in Wakefield in the 18^th century and given to the V&A in 1949. Together, both carvings would have likely once formed part of a larger work showing scenes from the Passion of Christ. At V&A South Kensington, the two pieces were exhibited side-by-side for decades.

The Deposition is dated to about 1190-1200, and is likely to have been made in York, North Yorkshire, one of the UK’s most important medieval centres of artistic patronage, trade and religion.

A revealing example of the craftsmanship and taste at the highest levels of society in the north of England in the late 12^th century, the Deposition depicts the moment in the story of the Passion in which Christ’s body is lifted from the cross by Joseph of Arimathea. Unique and intimate in its treatment of the subject’s expressions and gestures, the Deposition has attracted praise for both its masterful skills of ivory carving, and its embodiment of feelings of human suffering, empathy, and compassion.

The Deposition offers a fascinating glimpse into the art and craftsmanship of England during the Middle Ages, having survived the widespread destruction of religious art and imagery during the English Reformation of the 16^th century. An exceptionally rare piece, it is an invaluable resource for the study of cultural heritage and history in England and beyond, from patronage and taste in the Romanesque period, to global trade networks and historic sourcing of materials such as walrus ivory.

Extraordinary in its quality and condition, the Deposition ranks alongside two 12^th century Romanesque objects of outstanding national importance which are already part of the V&A’s collection: the Gloucester Candlestick, given to the Abbey (now cathedral) of St. Peter, Gloucester by Peter, Abbot from 1104-1113 and the Becket Casket reliquary enamelled with scenes from the life of St Thomas Becket.

The carving was on long-term loan to the V&A for 40 years until 2022. It has been exhibited at The Metropolitan Museum of Art (1970) and Hayward Gallery (1984).