LOS ANGELES, CA.- Getty presents Play and Pastimes in the Middle Ages, an exhibition that explores lively images of play in medieval manuscripts. Drawn from the Getty Museum’s collection, the exhibition goes on view at the Getty Center from May 16 through August 6, 2023.

“​​People in the Middle Ages enjoyed a variety of forms of recreation, much as we do today,” says Timothy Potts, Maria Hummer-Tuttle and Robert Tuttle Director of the Getty Museum. “This exhibition invites audiences to look closely at a variety of manuscript illuminations that show how images of play and games provided meaning in the pages of medieval books.”

Initial C: Gillion’s Sons Kneeling before the King of Cyprus (detail), from Romance of Gillion de Trazegnies, 1464, Lieven van Lathem. Tempera colors, gold, and ink, on parchment. Getty Museum, Ms. 111 (2013.46), fol. 105

All cultures and communities engage in various forms of play. In the Middle Ages, games and entertainment created potent imaginative spaces where people could learn skills, experience romance, engage in competition, establish social hierarchies, or simply have fun. Manuscripts from the period are rich with images that reveal a love of entertainment and sport, providing tantalizing hints about the history of play and its role in everyday life. The objects in this exhibition, which date from around 1240 to 1570, depict activities ranging from children’s games to the knightly pastimes of courting and jousting.

“In the Middle Ages, like today, play could be light-hearted but also be solemn, subversive, or even dangerous,” says Nava Streiter, curator of the exhibition and former intern in the Department of Manuscripts at the Getty Museum. “It was a source of joy and creativity, but also a way for individuals and communities to test themselves and develop new bonds.”

The God of Love Leads a Dance (detail), from Romance of the Rose, about 1405, Paris. Tempera colors, gold leaf, and ink, on parchment. Getty Museum, Ms. Ludwig XV (83.MR.177), fol. 8.

Play and Pastimes in the Middle Ages begins with the question: What was the last game you played? The exhibition will be interactive, allowing audiences to connect with medieval games and pastimes by participating in family-friendly activities throughout the gallery. Prompts will encourage audiences to engage with medieval images that depict such pastimes as dancing, jousting, dressing up, and checkers.

Play and Pastimes in the Middle Ages is curated by Nava Streiter, a former graduate intern at the Getty Museum, with assistance from Elizabeth Morrison, senior curator of manuscripts at the Getty Museum.

A Tournament Contest, from Tournament Book, about 1560-1570, probably Augsburg. Tempera colors and gold and silver paint on paper. Getty Museum, Ms. Ludwig XV 14 (83.MR.184), fols. 35v-36.

Initial C: The Massacre of the Innocents (detail), from Breviary, about 1320-1325, Paris. Tempera colors, gold leaf, and ink, on parchment. Getty Museum, Ms. Ludwig IX 2 (83.ML.98), fol. 142.

The Competition in Sittacene (detail), from Book of the Deeds of Alexander the Great, about 1470-1475, Master of the Jardin de verteuse consolation and assistant. Tempera colors, gold leaf, gold paint, and ink, on parchment. Getty Museum, Ms. Ludwig XV 8 (83.MR.178), fol. 99.

May Calendar Page (detail), from Psalter, mid-1200s, possibly Bruges. Tempera colors, gold leaf, and ink, on parchment. Getty Museum, Ms. 14 (85.MK.239), fol. 5.

Combat with a Lance (detail), from The Flower of Battle, about 1410, Venice or Padua. Tempera colors, gold leaf, silver leaf, and ink, on parchment. Getty Museum, Ms. Ludwig XV 13 (83.MR.183), fol. 40.

Initial D: The Lord Enthroned (detail), from Ruskin Hours, about 1300, Northeastern France. Tempera colors, gold leaf, and ink, on parchment. Getty Museum, Ms. Ludwig IX 3 (83.ML.99), fol. 63v.