Virgin and Child with Bird

Virgin and Child with Bird

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Represented as Queen of Heaven, the Virgin holds a playful Christ Child who, in turn, has caught a bird in flight. The bird symbolizes the soul and its resurrection. The bird nourishes itself on the blood of Christ, an act that refers to the Eucharist.

Medieval Art and The Cloisters

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

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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.