The Virgin and Child Enthroned

Image credit: The National Gallery, London

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The Virgin Mary sits on a grand throne, a chubby Christ Child balancing precariously on her knee. This is the central panel of a large polyptych (multi-panelled altarpiece) painted by Giorgio Schiavone, probably for the church of San Niccolò in Padua.

This altarpiece sits on the cusp of the shift in Italian painting from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance, and combines features of both periods. Although the background is gold, as was usual in medieval Italian painting, the Virgin sits on a classical marble throne decorated with carvings of putti (young boys in the persona of angels).

Christ rests one foot on an unusual glass ball with a pink string; four windows are reflected in it. This is perhaps an allusion to the globe sometimes held by the adult Christ in paintings, although it looks more like a bauble from a Christmas tree.

The National Gallery, London

London

Title

The Virgin and Child Enthroned

Date

probably about 1456-61

Medium

Tempera on wood

Measurements

H 91.5 x W 35 cm

Accession number

NG630.1

Acquisition method

Bought, 1860

Work type

Painting

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The National Gallery, London

Trafalgar Square, London, Greater London WC2N 5DN England

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