BACK TO GALLERY
Blumka
Enthroned Virgin and Child
This excellently preserved sculpture is a supreme example of Maria Lactans iconography
26 x 10 x 9 in. (57.2 x 26 x 23.3 cm)
description
The Virgin Mary, with a peaceful and loving facial expression, is seated on a cushion that rests on a marbleized cuboid pedestal. She is wearing a modest crown decorated with painted gems and round spires, a belted gown, a long mantel and pointed shoes. With her left arm she cradles the Christ Child sitting on her left knee, while proffering him her breast with her right hand. Christ’s right arm is not depicted, nor is his right foot, though his left foot juts out from under his robe onto the Virgin’s lap. His left hand rests on the Virgin’s right hand.
Remains of gilding can be found on the hair of the two figures as well as on the Virgin’s crown and, selectively, throughout the garments of both (i.e., along the trim and sleeves, the Virgin’s belt and around the dark, diamond-shaped decorations of the Virgin’s robes). Areas of red polychromy remain in the folds of the Virgin’s veil and mantle, on the interior folds of the garments of both figures and on decorative details of the Virgin’s crown. The marbleized pedestal is painted red, green and yellow in what appears to have been a weton-wet application. There is also black polychromy on small, selective areas that appear to serve mainly as embellishments and outlines for gilding on the crown and in the trim of the garments.
This excellently preserved sculpture is a supreme example of Maria Lactans (Nursing Madonna) iconography as could already be found in both ninth and tenth-century Coptic art as well as later in Byzantine painting and sculpture. However, it gained much wider popularity in twelfth-century medieval Europe during the period’s movement towards realism and humanism. The iconography continued to be actively used in painting and sculpture into the Renaissance. The great variety of Virgin and Child statues produced in 14th century France as well as the popularity of the Maria Lactans theme make it hard to precisely localize this particular sculpture. Based on William H. Forsyth’s article, as well as the book by Dr. Charles T. Little, Curator Emeritus of Medieval Art and The Cloisters, The Metropolitan Museum of Art (see the comparative literature) it is presumed that our Enthroned Virgin and Child comes either from near Île-de-France or north of that region. The Virgin’s physiognomy parallels the sculpture of The Seated Virgin Carrying the Child from The Louvre, Paris, inv. no. RF 2624. Furthermore, there are similarities in the drapery to the Virgin and Child sculpture from the collection Bossy, at The Louvre, Paris, inv. no. RF 1369 (Vitry and Brière, Pl. LXXXXV, no. 7) and the Standing Madonna and Child sculpture from the Collection Timbal in Stein, also at The Louvre, Paris, inv. no. RF 579 (Vitry and Brière, Pl. LXXXXIV, no. 5). All of these comparative sculptures are from the Île-de-France region.
Remains of gilding can be found on the hair of the two figures as well as on the Virgin’s crown and, selectively, throughout the garments of both (i.e., along the trim and sleeves, the Virgin’s belt and around the dark, diamond-shaped decorations of the Virgin’s robes). Areas of red polychromy remain in the folds of the Virgin’s veil and mantle, on the interior folds of the garments of both figures and on decorative details of the Virgin’s crown. The marbleized pedestal is painted red, green and yellow in what appears to have been a weton-wet application. There is also black polychromy on small, selective areas that appear to serve mainly as embellishments and outlines for gilding on the crown and in the trim of the garments.
This excellently preserved sculpture is a supreme example of Maria Lactans (Nursing Madonna) iconography as could already be found in both ninth and tenth-century Coptic art as well as later in Byzantine painting and sculpture. However, it gained much wider popularity in twelfth-century medieval Europe during the period’s movement towards realism and humanism. The iconography continued to be actively used in painting and sculpture into the Renaissance. The great variety of Virgin and Child statues produced in 14th century France as well as the popularity of the Maria Lactans theme make it hard to precisely localize this particular sculpture. Based on William H. Forsyth’s article, as well as the book by Dr. Charles T. Little, Curator Emeritus of Medieval Art and The Cloisters, The Metropolitan Museum of Art (see the comparative literature) it is presumed that our Enthroned Virgin and Child comes either from near Île-de-France or north of that region. The Virgin’s physiognomy parallels the sculpture of The Seated Virgin Carrying the Child from The Louvre, Paris, inv. no. RF 2624. Furthermore, there are similarities in the drapery to the Virgin and Child sculpture from the collection Bossy, at The Louvre, Paris, inv. no. RF 1369 (Vitry and Brière, Pl. LXXXXV, no. 7) and the Standing Madonna and Child sculpture from the Collection Timbal in Stein, also at The Louvre, Paris, inv. no. RF 579 (Vitry and Brière, Pl. LXXXXIV, no. 5). All of these comparative sculptures are from the Île-de-France region.
SEND AN EMAIL