Virgin and Child

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The unusual depiction of the Christ child both nursing and blessing conveys a domestic tenderness that became increasingly evident in the cult of the Virgin. Originally painted, such statuettes would have been incorporated into small shrines for devotion within the home. In many respects this charming figure is a micro version of the great work attributed to Claus de Werve (d. 1439), a Netherlandish sculptor working in Burgundy, on view in the center of the Museum's Medieval Sculpture Hall, to the south of this gallery.

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