Virgin and Child Enthroned

14th century

On View

European: Medieval, Level 2, Central Wing

Virgin and Child Enthroned: 1 of Collection Gallery

Virgin and Child Enthroned: 2 of Collection Gallery

Virgin and Child Enthroned: 3 of Collection Gallery

Virgin and Child Enthroned: 4 of Collection Gallery

Virgin and Child Enthroned: 5 of Collection Gallery

Virgin and Child Enthroned: 6 of Collection Gallery

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About the Artwork

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Provenance

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Published References

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Catalogue Raisonné

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Credit Line for Reproduction

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About the Artwork

A courtly Virgin Mary leans back slightly as she gazes adoringly at the young Jesus, who stands on her knee. The graceful curve of the ivory figure follows the shape of the elephant tusk from which this sculpture was carved. This swaying posture not only echoed the material realities of ivory but also inspired artists working in other media. Many figures painted or sculpted from the 1200s through the 1400s adopt a similar pose, which scholars today often describe as the “Gothic sway.”
Although this artwork appears to be a freestanding sculpture of the Virgin and Child, its hollow back suggests that it was once part of a small shrine that would have been brightly painted and gilded. Traces of gold still cling to the borders of the sweeping robes and the Virgin’s hair, and the folds of her veil retain remnants of vibrant red pigment.

Title Virgin and Child Enthroned

Artwork Date 14th century

Artist ----------

Life Dates ----------

Nationality Please note: Definitions for nationality may vary significantly, depending on chronology and world events. Some definitions include: Belonging to a people having a common origin based on a geography and/or descent and/or tradition and/or culture and/or religion and/or language, or sharing membership in a legally defined nation. French

Culture Please note: Cultures may be defined by the language, customs, religious beliefs, social norms, and material traits of a group. ----------

Medium Ivory, with traces of polychromy and gilding

Dimensions Overall (including base): 11 1/2 × 5 3/4 × 3 1/8 inches (29.2 × 14.6 × 7.9 cm) Overall (without base): 10 1/8 × 4 1/8 × 1 1/2 inches (25.7 × 10.5 × 3.8 cm)

Classification Sculpture

Department European Sculpture and Dec Arts

Credit Founders Society Purchase, General Membership Fund

Accession Number This unique number is assigned to an individual artwork as part of the cataloguing process at the time of entry into the permanent collection. Most frequently, accession numbers begin with the year in which the artwork entered the museum’s holdings. For example, 2008.3 refers to the year of acquisition and notes that it was the 3rd of that year. The DIA has a few additional systems—no longer assigned—that identify specific donors or museum patronage groups. 64.71

Markings

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Provenance

Dmitri Schevitch (Paris, France);
April 4-7, 1906, sold by (Galerie Georges Petit, Paris, France) lot 150;
Baron Robert de Rothschild [1880–1946] (Paris, France);
(Rosenberg & Stiebel, New York, New York, USA);
1964-present, purchase by the Detroit Institute of Arts (Detroit, Michigan, USA)

For more information on provenance, please visit:

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Exhibition History

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The exhibition history of a number of objects in our collection only begins after their acquisition by the museum, and may reflect an incomplete record.

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Published References

Moskowitz, A. "A Madonna and Child Statue: Reversing a Reattribution." Bulletin of the DIA 61, no. 4 (1984): pp. 34-47, p. 42 (fig. 13).

Randall, Jr., Richard H. The Golden Age of Ivory: Carvings in North American Collections. New York, 1993, no. 4, p. 35.

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Catalogue Raisoneé

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Credit Line for Reproduction

French, Virgin and Child Enthroned, 14th century, ivory, with traces of polychromy and gilding. Detroit Institute of Arts, Founders Society Purchase, General Membership Fund, 64.71.