Seated Virgin and Child

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

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.

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