Architectural frame, with an emblematic circular bas-relief, representing two half-length figures of winged genii holding an apple between them (Medium tenuere beati.) (Fol. h vii verso) 1499

Curator: This is an intriguing little piece, an architectural frame featuring a circular bas-relief, now residing at the Harvard Art Museums. The anonymous artist depicts two winged genii holding an apple. Editor: It feels like a half-remembered dream. The stark black lines, the cherubic figures… it's both innocent and a bit unsettling, isn’t it? Like a postcard from a forgotten realm. Curator: The apple, of course, invites interpretations of temptation and knowledge, particularly within a Western framework of gender and power. The genii act as mediators. Editor: Mediators of sweetness, maybe? Or is that too simplistic? It’s so visually balanced, even with that heavy frame weighing it down. It’s like… joy trapped in geometry. Curator: It certainly invites questions about desire, innocence, and the frameworks we impose upon these concepts. Editor: It makes me wonder about the artist, what were they dreaming of when they drew these winged figures sharing that fruit. Curator: Indeed, these visual fragments offer endless interpretations that are still relevant in the contemporary world. Editor: It's a tiny window into a big, complicated world of feelings, isn't it?