Curatorial Notes
In this triptych, Mary, crowned as the queen of heaven, is surrounded by female saints in an enclosed garden (called a hortus conclusus) evoking paradise. Singled out on the right wing is Saint Ursula, thought to have been a British princess who set out on a pilgrimage to Rome, only to be martyred along with her throng of companions, depicted here at a miniature scale. Saint Agnes, another martyr of the early Christian era, is on the left wing. The gold framing arches refer to the combination of gilded sculpture and painting that was a common feature of German altarpieces in this period. The emphasis on youthful, female saints suggests that this was a devotional triptych for a community of nuns.
Artwork Identification
Title Triptych of the Virgin and Child with Saints
Title (PT) Tríptico da Virgem e do Menino com Santos
Title (ES) Tríptico de la Virgen y el Niño con Santos
Artist German
Artist Bio South German
Date c. 1510
Work Type Painting
Location & Collection
Institution Art Institute of Chicago
Source View Museum Page
License Creative Commons Public Domain Mark 1.0
