Enthroned Virgin

Goro di Gregorio

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

This work is a rare surviving example of medieval sculpture in terracotta—no other Italian examples from the period exist today. The sketchiness of the modeling and the omission of figure of the Christ Child, among other details, suggest that the sculpture was most likely created as a workshop model rather than as a finished piece. It has been proposed that the terracotta was made as a goldsmith's model for the Virgin and Child group intended for the center of an altarpiece. The graceful pose of the Virgin, the rhythmic folds of drapery, and the delicate treatment of her face are consistent with the French-inspired style seen in Tuscany from the middle of the fourteenth century.

Medieval Art and The Cloisters

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Museum's collection of medieval and Byzantine art is among the most comprehensive in the world. Displayed in both The Met Fifth Avenue and in the Museum's branch in northern Manhattan, The Met Cloisters, the collection encompasses the art of the Mediterranean and Europe from the fall of Rome in the fourth century to the beginning of the Renaissance in the early sixteenth century. It also includes pre-medieval European works of art created during the Bronze Age and early Iron Age.

Metropolitan Museum of Art