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{{Short description|Artwork divided into three parts}}
{{Other uses}}
[[File:Annunciation Triptych (Merode Altarpiece) MET DP273206.jpg|thumb|The ''[[Merode Altarpiece]]'', attributed to the workshop of [[Robert Campin]], c. 1427–32]]
[[File:Nürnberg St. Lorenz Dreikönigsaltar 01.jpg|thumb|Dreikönigsaltar by [[Hans Pleydenwurff]].1460-1465]]
[[File:El jardín de las Delicias, de El Bosco.jpg|thumb|[[Hieronymus Bosch]], ''[[The Garden of Earthly Delights]]'', 1490–1510. [[Museo del Prado]], Madrid]]
[[Image:Gallen Kallela The Aino Triptych.jpg|thumb|The ''[[Aino (mythology)|Aino Myth]]'', the ''[[Kalevala]]'' based triptych painted by [[Akseli Gallen-Kallela]] in 1891. [[Ateneum]], Helsinki]]
A '''triptych''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|t|r|ɪ|p|t|ɪ|k}} {{respell|TRIP|tik}}) is a work of [[art]] (usually a [[panel painting]]) that is divided into three sections, or three [[Wood carving|carved]] panels that are hinged together and can be folded shut or displayed open. It is therefore a type of [[polyptych]], the term for all multi-panel works. The middle panel is typically the largest and it is flanked by two smaller related works, although there are triptychs of equal-sized panels. The form can also be used for [[pendant]] jewelry.

Beyond its association with art, the term is sometimes used more generally to connote anything with three parts, particularly if integrated into a single unit.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/triptych |title=Triptych |quote=Although triptych originally described a specific type of Roman writing tablet that had three hinged sections, it is not surprising that the idea was generalized first to a type of painting, and then to anything composed of three parts. |work=[[Merriam-Webster Dictionary]] |access-date=January 28, 2017}}</ref>

==Etymology==
The word ''triptych'' was formed in English by compounding the prefix ''[[tri-]]'' with the word ''[[diptych]]''.<ref>{{cite OED|triptych, n.|2659890662}}</ref> ''Diptych'' is [[Loanword|borrowed]] from the [[Latin]] {{lang|la|diptycha}}, which itself is derived from the [[Late Greek]] {{lang|grc|δίπτυχα}} ({{Transliteration|grc|díptycha}}) {{gloss|pair of writing tablets}}. {{lang|grc|δίπτυχα}} is the neuter plural of {{lang|grc|δίπτυχος}} ({{Transliteration|grc|díptychos}}) {{gloss|double-folded}}.<ref>{{cite OED|diptych, n.|1119971632}}</ref>

== In art ==

The triptych form appears in early Christian art, and was a popular standard format for altar paintings from the Middle Ages onwards. Its geographical range was from the eastern [[Byzantine]] churches to the Celtic churches in the west. During the Byzantine period, triptychs were often used for private devotional use, along with other relics such as icons.<ref>2014. ''History of the World in 1,000 Objects.''London, New York. [[Dorling Kindersley|D.K. Publishing]].</ref> Renaissance painters such as [[Hans Memling]] and [[Hieronymus Bosch]] used the form. Sculptors also used it. Triptych forms also allow ease of transport.

From the [[gothic architecture|Gothic]] period onward, both in Europe and elsewhere, altarpieces in churches and cathedrals were often in triptych form. One such cathedral with an altarpiece triptych is [[Llandaff Cathedral]]. The [[Cathedral of Our Lady (Antwerp)|Cathedral of Our Lady]] in [[Antwerp]], Belgium, contains two examples by [[Peter Paul Rubens|Rubens]], and [[Notre Dame de Paris]] is another example of the use of triptych in architecture. The form is echoed by the structure of many ecclesiastical [[stained glass window]]s.

The triptych form's transportability was exploited during World War Two when a private citizens' committee in the United States commissioned painters and sculptors to create portable three-panel hinged altarpieces for use by Christian and Jewish U.S. troops for religious services.<ref name="Murphy, Skolnick 2014">{{cite book |last1=Brawer |first1=Catherine Coleman |last2=Skolnick |first2=Kathrine Murphy |title=The Art Deco murals of Hildreth Meière |date=2014 |publisher=Andrea Monfried Editions |location=New York |isbn=978-0-9910263-0-2 |edition=First}}</ref> By the end of the war, 70 artists had created 460 triptychs. Among the most prolific were [[Violet Oakley]], [[Nina Barr Wheeler]], and [[Hildreth Meiere]].<ref name="Richmond-Moll">{{cite journal |last1=Richmond-Moll |first1=Jeffrey |title=Triptychs at War: Violet Oakley's Victory |journal=Archives of American Art Journal |date=Spring 2018 |volume=57 |issue=1 |pages=22–43 |doi=10.1086/698334 |s2cid=195041325 |url=https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/pdfplus/10.1086/698334|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

The triptych format has been used in non-Christian faiths, including, Judaism, Islam, and Buddhism. For example: the triptych ''Hilje-j-Sherif'' displayed at the [[National Museum of Oriental Art]], Rome, Italy, and a page of the ''[[Qur'an]]'' at the [[Turkish and Islamic Arts Museum|Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts]] in Istanbul, Turkey, exemplify [[Ottoman Empire|Ottoman]] religious art adapting the motif.<ref>{{cite book |author=Museum With No Frontiers |author-link=Museum With No Frontiers |publisher=Museum With No Frontiers, Arab Institute for Research and Publishing |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gA3dSlLBG38C&q=islamic+triptych&pg=PA258 |location=Brussels, Belgium, Beirut, Lebanon |year=2007 |title=Discover Islamic Art in the Mediterranean |page=258 |isbn=9789953369570 |access-date=January 28, 2017}}</ref>  Likewise, Tibetan Buddhists have used it in traditional altars.<ref>{{cite book |title=Tibetan Buddhist Altars: A Pop-Up Gallery of Traditional Art and Wisdom |type=Hardcover |first1=Tad |last1=Wise |first2=Robert |last2=Beers |first3=David A. |last3=Carter |publisher=[[New World Library]]  |date=August 25, 2004 |isbn=978-1577314677 }}</ref>

Although strongly identified as a religious [[altarpiece]] form, triptychs outside that context have been created, some of the best-known examples being works by [[Max Beckmann]] and [[Francis Bacon (artist)|Francis Bacon]]. When Bacon's 1969 triptych, ''[[Three Studies of Lucian Freud]]'', was sold in 2013 for $142.4 million,<ref>{{cite web |title=2013 Live Auction 2791 Post-War and Contemporary Evening Sale |url=https://www.christies.com/en/lot/lot-5755778 |website=Christies.com |publisher=Christie's |access-date=15 March 2022 |date=November 11, 2013}}</ref> it was the highest price ever paid for an artwork at auction at that time.<ref>{{cite news|last=Vogel|first=Carol|title=Bacon's Study of Freud Sells for $142.4 Million|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|date=November 12, 2013|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/13/arts/design/bacons-study-of-freud-sells-for-more-than-142-million.html|access-date=November 12, 2013}}</ref> That record was broken in May 2015 by $179.4 million for [[Pablo Picasso]]'s 1955 painting ''[[Les Femmes d'Alger|Les Femmes d’Alger]]''.<ref>[https://digg.com/2015/modigliani-nu-couche-140-million A History Of Insane Art Prices] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161228040326/http://digg.com/2015/modigliani-nu-couche-140-million/ |date=2016-12-28 }} Digg.com Retrieved 16 November 2015.</ref>

== In photography ==

[[File:Epilobium hirsutum - Seed head - Triptych.jpg|thumb|Modern photographic triptych]]
A photographic triptych is a common style used in modern commercial artwork. The photographs are usually arranged with a plain border between them. The work may consist of separate images that are variants on a theme, or may be one larger image split into three.<ref>[http://www.photoanswers.co.uk/Video/Search-Results/Imaging-Techniques/Create-a-Triptych-in-Photoshop/ Photo Answers Magazine] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141129041319/http://www.photoanswers.co.uk/Video/Search-Results/Imaging-Techniques/Create-a-Triptych-in-Photoshop/ |date=2014-11-29 }} 9 April 2009, Michael Topham</ref><ref>[http://digital-photography-school.com/diptychs-triptychs-5-prime-examples/ Digital Photography School: Diptychs & Triptychs – 5 Prime Examples] Elizabeth Halford</ref><ref>{{Citation | last =Kay | first =Nate | title =Triptych Photography Examples and Ideas | publisher =The Photo Argus | date =3 January 2017 | url =http://www.thephotoargus.com/triptych-photography-examples-and-ideas/ | access-date = 28 June 2017}}</ref>

== Examples ==

* [[Stefaneschi Triptych]] by [[Giotto]], c. 1330
* ''[[Annunciation with St. Margaret and St. Ansanus]]'' by [[Simone Martini]], 1333
* The [[Mérode Altarpiece]] by [[Robert Campin]], late 1420's
* ''[[The Garden of Earthly Delights]]'', ''[[Triptych of the Temptation of St. Anthony]]'' and ''[[The Haywain Triptych]]'' by [[Hieronymus Bosch]]
* The [[Portinari Altarpiece]] by [[Hugo van der Goes]], c. 1475
* The [[Buhl Altarpiece]], c. 1495
* ''[[The Elevation of the Cross (Rubens)|The Raising of the Cross]]'' by [[Peter Paul Rubens]], 1610 or 1611
* ''The [[Aino (mythology)|Aino]] Myth'' triptych by [[Akseli Gallen-Kallela]], 1891
* ''[[The Pioneer (painting)|The Pioneer]]'' by [[Frederick McCubbin]], 1904
* ''Departure'' by [[Max Beckmann]], 1932–33
* ''[[Three Studies for Figures at the Base of a Crucifixion]]'' by [[Francis Bacon (artist)|Francis Bacon]], 1944

== Gallery ==

<gallery mode="packed" heights="230">
File:Cracow Legend of Saint Stanislaus 01.jpg|Wooden model to the silver triptych of [[Stanislaus of Szczepanów|Saint Stanislaus]], ca. 1512, [[National Museum, Warsaw|National Museum]] in [[Warsaw]]<ref name=artinpl/>
File:Master of Frankfurt (Maestro de Francfort), Sagrada  Familia con ángel músico, Santa Catalina de Alejandría, Santa Bárbara, 1510-1520, Museo del Prado, Madrid..jpg|[[Master of Frankfurt]], ''Sagrada Familia con ángel músico, Santa Catalina de Alejandría, Santa Bárbara'', 1510–1520, [[Museo del Prado]], Madrid
File:Klosterneuburg - Stift, Verduner Altar (1).JPG|The Verdun Altar in [[Klosterneuburg Monastery]]
</gallery>

== See also ==
{{Portal|Visual arts}}
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* {{Annotated link |Diptych}}
* {{Annotated link |Polyptych}}
* {{Annotated link |Polyvision}}
* {{Annotated link |Three hares}}
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== References ==

{{Reflist|refs=
<ref name=artinpl>{{cite web|author=Marcin Latka |title= Triptych with Legend of Saint Stanislaus from Pławno |url=https://www.pinterest.co.uk/pin/418905202840589837 |work=artinpl |access-date=3 August 2019 }}</ref>
}}

== External links ==

{{Wiktionary|triptych}}
{{Commons category|Triptychs}}
* [http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/88.3.1/ The Institution of the Eucharist at the Last Supper with St. Peter and St. Paul], [[Metropolitan Museum of Art]]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20110727135925/http://objectlessons.org/index.php?mod=PageMod.showComponent&section_id=5&category_id=19&component_id=146&component_type=feature On the triptych as a writing instrument]
* [http://www.halfordrestorations.co.uk/reredos.shtml Example of triptych features and restoration]

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[[Category:Altarpieces]]
[[Category:Artistic techniques]]
[[Category:Church architecture]]
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[[Category:Optical illusions]]
[[Category:Picture framing]]
[[Category:Romanesque art]]
[[Category:Rotational symmetry]]
[[Category:Sculpture]]
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[[Category:Synagogue architecture]]
[[Category:Triptychs]]
[[Category:Visual motifs]]
[[Category:Binocular rivalry]]