Lockplate

Along with masonry architecture and stained glass, one of the most developed of the applied arts in medieval Europe was wrought iron. The metal had long been used for functional purposes, but during the Middle Ages blacksmiths in central Europe raised the forging and ornamenting of iron to a level unseen since antiquity.

Originally part of the fittings for a large wooden door, this lockplate is an exceptional example of Germanic metalworking during the late Gothic period. Although lockplates with scalloped edges and applied tracery were made in many European cities, the delicacy of the iron appliqués on this piece and the decorative terminals on the scallops' points suggest a great German metalworking center like Nuremberg.

"Decorative Arts Highlights from the Wendy and Emery Reves Collection," page12