Enthroned Virgin and Child

Enthroned Virgin and Child

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Crowned as the Queen of Heaven, Mary is seated on a richly ornamented throne, while the infant Jesus holds an orb or apple and blesses. Mary also tramples a dragon in triumph—a visual reference to the Book of Genesis (3:15), in which God declares to the serpent, “I will put enmity between thee and the woman.” The fluid drapery style is a hallmark of northern sculpture about 1200.

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.