Seated Virgin and Child in the Cloisters, Sept. 2007

Seated Virgin and Child

Date: ca. 1300–1350

Geography: Made in Ile-de-France, France

Culture: French

Medium: Walnut, paint, gilt

Dimensions: Overall: 48 in. (121.9 cm)

Classification: Sculpture-Wood

Credit Line: The Cloisters Collection, 1925

Accession Number: 25.120.290

Description:

The elegant drapery folds, pitched knees, and engaging expression of this Virgin are characteristic of the Gothic Style of fourteenth-century France. The Virgin is represented as an idealized court lady, with a high waist, a high forehead, and delicate features; the Christ Child is depicted as a chubby-cheeked, playful infant. This sculpture is said, without confirmation, to come from the Royal Abbey of Saint-Denis, north of Paris.

Text from: www.metmuseum.org/collection/the-collection-online/search/472342