The Noha Studio Shop Etsy  (opens Etsy)
Woven cotton blanket of The Mouth of Hell from the Winchester Psalter, hung on a white gallery wall. A monster’s open jaws are crowded with demons and the damned, an angel with a key stands at a red door on the left, and colorful fringe runs along the edges.
Close-up of the woven cotton on The Mouth of Hell blanket, showing the red-rimmed eye on the monster’s lower jaw, the curved lines of its lip, and the dark crowd of figures inside the mouth.
The Mouth of Hell woven blanket spread across a bed in a warm, sunlit bedroom, with a brass lamp, a plant and rust and olive pillows.
Two people on a city rooftop at sunset hold up the whole Mouth of Hell woven blanket, showing its size.
Size guide: 52 × 37 in, 60 × 50 in and 80 × 60 in; sizes may vary by up to 2.5 in.

N° 004

The Mouth of Hell

$79 – $139

Woven blanket & wall hanging | 100% cotton

In this 12th-century prayer book, an angel turns a key in the door of Hell, with the damned still inside. Why does he need a key?

Because the judgment is over. The page belongs to the book’s Last Judgment, and the angel is shutting the damned inside Hell. A line of Anglo-Norman French at the top of the page names the scene. It reads Ici est enfers e li angels ki enferme les portes, “Here is Hell, and the angel who shuts the gates.”

More about this work

Sizes

  • Small Throw52 × 37 in · 132 × 94 cm · Armchair or small wall$79
  • Classic Throw60 × 50 in · 152 × 127 cm · Sofa$99
  • Grand80 × 60 in · 203 × 152 cm · Bed or large wall$139
View on Etsy : number 004, The Mouth of Hell, opens in a new tab

Read our reviews on Etsy  (opens Etsy)

Made to order, then shipped from the USA with tracking. Your estimated delivery date is shown at checkout on Etsy. 30-day returns. You’ll pick your size and check out on Etsy.

The work
Title
The Mouth of Hell
Also known as
An angel locking the gates of Hell; the Hellmouth
Maker
Unknown
Manuscript
Winchester Psalter, also called the Psalter of Henry of Blois
Date
c. 1150
Made in
Winchester, England
Medium
Ink and pigments on parchment
Page size
About 12 ½ × 9 in (32 × 23 cm)
Place in the book
Folio 39 recto, the last of nine pages on the Last Judgment (ff. 31r–39r) in the book’s present order
Caption on the page
Ici est enfers e li angels ki enferme les portes (Anglo-Norman French: “Here is Hell, and the angel who shuts the gates”)
Shelfmark
Cotton MS Nero C IV, f. 39r
Held by
The British Library, London (Cotton MS Nero C IV, f. 39r). Not affiliated with or endorsed by the British Library.
Rights
Public domain. The digital image used is shared under CC0 1.0 via Wikimedia Commons.

The Winchester Psalter is a book of psalms made in England around 1150. It was almost certainly made at Winchester, perhaps for its bishop, Henry of Blois, a brother of King Stephen. The book opens with 38 full-page pictures. In today’s order, the last nine show the Last Judgment, and this page comes last.

English artists had shown Hell as the open jaws of a monster since Anglo-Saxon times. Here the jaws are packed with demons tormenting the damned, and more monster heads grow out of the beast. On the left, a red door is set into the frame. An angel stands outside it and turns a key in its lock.

In 1731 the psalter was caught in a fire at Ashburnham House in London, where the Cotton collection of manuscripts was kept. The outer edges of its leaves were damaged. Its pictures once faced each other in pairs across the open book. After the fire, the folded sheets were split into single leaves, and the pictures were remounted on right-hand pages only. Their original order is not certain.

“Ici est enfers e li angels ki enferme les portes”

caption at the top of the page, in Anglo-Norman French

Details
  • Woven blanket, 100% cotton, with colorful fringed edges
  • Three sizes: 52 × 37 in (132 × 94 cm), 60 × 50 in (152 × 127 cm), 80 × 60 in (203 × 152 cm)
  • Size tolerance ±2.5 in (about 6 cm)
  • Hang it as a wall tapestry (hanging hardware not included), or use it on a sofa or bed
  • Woven threads soften fine linework; colors and texture differ slightly from the screen image
  • Catalogue N° 004 · The Noha Studio
Care
  • Machine wash cold, max 30°C / 86°F
  • Gentle cycle, mild detergent
  • Non-chlorine bleach only if needed
  • Tumble dry low
Shipping & returns

Designed by The Noha Studio. Made to order by our production partner in the USA.

Made to order, then shipped from the USA with tracking. Your estimated delivery date is shown at checkout on Etsy.

Arrived damaged or faulty? Message us on Etsy with a photo and we’ll replace it or refund you.

30-day returns (no exchanges): message us on Etsy first. Buyers in the EU and the UK also keep their 14-day right of withdrawal and their legal guarantee.

EU orders: since July 1, 2026, the EU charges a flat €3 customs duty per item type on low-value parcels; it may be added at checkout or collected on delivery.

Prices are in USD. Checkout is on Etsy.

Questions before you order? Write to us at team@thenoha.com.

Care & Shipping · Returns & refunds

Also in The Underworld

Read the story Why does the angel need a key? 

The original work is in the public domain.