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The Virgin and Child

Image credit: The National Gallery, London

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Notes

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In 1999 this panel was reunited with its pair, an image of Christ known as the Man of Sorrows. Together they formed a diptych, a painting made of two panels joined with a hinge.

The Virgin Mary gestures towards the Christ Child, bowing her head towards him. He looks up towards her and makes a blessing gesture with his right hand. The poses of the Virgin and Child belong to Byzantine (Eastern Christian) icon painting, specifically the Virgin Hodegetria (meaning, in Greek, the Virgin ’showing the way'). The image was believed to have miracle-working properties, partly because it was thought to be based on a painting of the Virgin and Child made by Saint Luke.

The image became popular in Italy, in particular in Pisa, in the thirteenth century – the painter of this panel, known as the Master of the Borgo Crucifix, was probably trained by the Pisan artist Giunta da Pisano.

The National Gallery, London

London

Title

The Virgin and Child

Date

c.1255–1260

Medium

Egg tempera on wood (poplar)

Measurements

H 32.4 x W 22.8 cm

Accession number

NG6572

Acquisition method

Bought, 1999

Work type

Painting

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Normally on display at

The National Gallery, London

Trafalgar Square, London, Greater London WC2N 5DN England

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