Treasures of the Medieval World at Luhring Augustine represents what galleries can offer that many museums do not: an up-close and personal experience with museum-worthy artworks, without an admission price. Over 40 works dating from the 12th through the 16th century fill this compact, beautifully curated show. A range of paintings, textiles, wood and stone sculptures, illuminated manuscripts, and other objects of worship serves as a basic primer on European medieval art. Nothing on view greedily demands attention. Instead, the rich color and details of each work invite viewers to spend time looking, and the opportunity to have a relaxed, intimate experience with these pieces should not be missed.The show opens with a limestone human-dog gargoyle (Southern France, c. 1300–1350), an example of “crude” art meant to contrast with religious imagery. A gilded brass reliquary in the shape of a bust of a martyred saint (Southern Germany or Switzerland, c. 1500) is a particularly otherworldly presence in the show, her eyes gazing back at the viewer, blood dripping from her neck. Alabaster altarpiece of the Passion (England, Midlands, c. 1450), alabaster with polychromy, set into a modern carcassThe exhibition is a treasure trove of formally and conceptually compelling works. A medievalist would have to explain their significance (a catalog is available to read on the gallery’s website). However, a predella showing three scenes from the Passion of Christ (northeastern Spain, c. 1440) features a powerful image of Christ’s lifeless body, and a carved alabaster retable (England, Midlands, c. 1450) is a show-stopper. A polychrome wood sculpture of St. George slaying a dragon is especially stunning: The red of the saint’s armor and headgear is a vivid contrast to the muted colors of his body, while the stylized dragon’s twisted neck and bulging eyes imbue the mythical animal with pathos.The gallery setting also encourages visitors who are used to viewing contemporary art in galleries to see the work from a different perspective — a strategy that can fail when important historical context is elided, but here it illuminates the bold and innovative aesthetic choices made by artists nearly a millennium ago. George and the Dragon (Austria, Tyrol, c. 1430), softwood with silvering and polychromyKonrad Kyeser, “The Donaueschingen Bellifortis” (Alsace or the Lake Constance area, c. 1460), illustrated manuscript on paperA gilded brass reliquary bust of a martyred female saint (Southern Germany or Switzerland, c. 1500), brass with gilding and polychromyA predella depicting three scenes from the Passion of ChristTilman Riemenschneider, “The Seebenstein Madonna” (Germany, Franconia, Würzburg, c. 1500–05), limewood with traces of polychromyTreasures of the Medieval World continues at Luring Augustine (17 White Street, Tribeca, Manhattan) through March 8. The exhibition was organized by the gallery in conjunction with Sam Fogg, London.