Anonymous Master
Beautiful Madonna from Wrocław
The sculpture is an example of the late International Gothic style in sculpture. The type, having a specific emotional expression and unsurpassable delicacy, is known as the Beautiful Madonna. The sculpture ranks as one of the most significant examples of this type. It depicts the standing Virgin tenderly holding the infant Christ. Feminine beauty of Mary is allusion to her spiritual beauty, while the apple given to the Child is allusion to Mary as incarnation of the new Eve and Christ's sacrifice. With humble consent to Incarnation she has redeemed disobedience of Eve and the Original Sin.
The abundant mantle falling in brisk vertical folds and descending in bowl-shaped folds is capable to protect and emphasize the dynamics of the composition. It may be an allusion to the idea of Mary as a Mother of Mercy, while the crown is a sign of her role as Queen of Heaven.
The composition and outstanding artistic value goes hand in hand with the subtlety of detail - subtle cut of half-closed eyes of Mary, pensive expression, her gentle fingers or soft modeling of the Child's figure. The original polychrome which emphasized the qualities of the statue preserved only partially. The naked body of the Child aims to emphasize the humanity of Christ.
Stylistic nature indicate Prague during the reign of King Wenceslas IV (1378-1419) as the most probable place of origin. According to Gerhard Schmidt Bohemian gracefulness served as a remedy against the religious and political unrest of the period. The sculpture, originally in the St. Elizabeth's Church in Wrocław was transferred in the 19th century to Silesian Museum of Decorative Arts and Antiquities and in 1946 to the National Museum in Warsaw.
The abundant mantle falling in brisk vertical folds and descending in bowl-shaped folds is capable to protect and emphasize the dynamics of the composition. It may be an allusion to the idea of Mary as a Mother of Mercy, while the crown is a sign of her role as Queen of Heaven.
The composition and outstanding artistic value goes hand in hand with the subtlety of detail - subtle cut of half-closed eyes of Mary, pensive expression, her gentle fingers or soft modeling of the Child's figure. The original polychrome which emphasized the qualities of the statue preserved only partially. The naked body of the Child aims to emphasize the humanity of Christ.
Stylistic nature indicate Prague during the reign of King Wenceslas IV (1378-1419) as the most probable place of origin. According to Gerhard Schmidt Bohemian gracefulness served as a remedy against the religious and political unrest of the period. The sculpture, originally in the St. Elizabeth's Church in Wrocław was transferred in the 19th century to Silesian Museum of Decorative Arts and Antiquities and in 1946 to the National Museum in Warsaw.
polychromy on gaize, c. 1390, 113 × 47.5 × 32 cm (44.5 × 18.7 × 12.6 in), inventory number Śr.8, on permanent display in the Gallery of Medieval Art, Muzeum Narodowe w Warszawie (MNW)
© Marcin Latka
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