Circular Relief
1480-1525 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
This medallion or roundel is made by the workshop of Andrea Della Robbia, in Florence, Italy in ca. 1480-1525.
It represents the Virgin kneeling in the centre and turned to the left, adoring the Child who lies on the ground before her. To the left is the young St. John, wearing a skin and cloak, kneeling on his right knee and in an attitude of prayer.
This composition exists in several versions, all of which probably depend from a lost original by Andrea della Robbia.
The Della Robbia was an Italian family of sculptors and potters. They were active in Florence from the early 15th century and elsewhere in Italy and France well into the 16th. Family members were traditionally employed in the textile industry, and their name derives from rubia tinctorum, a red dye.
Andrea was the Nephew of Luca della Robbia, who founded the workshop and invented the technique of enamelled terracotta.
This technique is about evenly applying pigment suspended in tin-oxide glaze to the fired terracotta before refiring. The pallet was restricted and it was eg. not possible to reproduce flesh-tones, so these areas have been left unglazed, and would have been painted instead to create a more natural effect.
It represents the Virgin kneeling in the centre and turned to the left, adoring the Child who lies on the ground before her. To the left is the young St. John, wearing a skin and cloak, kneeling on his right knee and in an attitude of prayer.
This composition exists in several versions, all of which probably depend from a lost original by Andrea della Robbia.
The Della Robbia was an Italian family of sculptors and potters. They were active in Florence from the early 15th century and elsewhere in Italy and France well into the 16th. Family members were traditionally employed in the textile industry, and their name derives from rubia tinctorum, a red dye.
Andrea was the Nephew of Luca della Robbia, who founded the workshop and invented the technique of enamelled terracotta.
This technique is about evenly applying pigment suspended in tin-oxide glaze to the fired terracotta before refiring. The pallet was restricted and it was eg. not possible to reproduce flesh-tones, so these areas have been left unglazed, and would have been painted instead to create a more natural effect.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Circular relief in enamelled, polychrome terracotta |
| Brief description | Circular relief in enamelled terracotta, showing the Nativity, workshop of Andrea della Robbia, late 15th, early 16th century |
| Physical description | The Virgin is shown kneeling in the centre turned to the left, adoring the Child who lies on the ground before her. To the left is the young St. John, wearing a skin and cloak, kneeling on his right knee and in an attitude of prayer. In a rear plane in the centre are the ox and ass. In the distance to right and left are two trees, and in the sky above appear two six-winged cherub heads. The border is a garland of bunches of fruit, composed of six sections comprising pine-cones (two sections) and oranges. The Virgin wears a blue cloak with green lining, and the remainder of the relief is enamelled in white, yellow, green, blue, brown and black. The flesh parts are unglazed. |
| Dimensions |
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| Object history | This composition exists in several versions, all of which probably depend from a lost original by Andrea della Robbia. |
| Historical context | Andrea was the Nephew of Luca della Robbia, who founded the workshop and invented the technique of enamelled terracotta. |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Summary | This medallion or roundel is made by the workshop of Andrea Della Robbia, in Florence, Italy in ca. 1480-1525. It represents the Virgin kneeling in the centre and turned to the left, adoring the Child who lies on the ground before her. To the left is the young St. John, wearing a skin and cloak, kneeling on his right knee and in an attitude of prayer. This composition exists in several versions, all of which probably depend from a lost original by Andrea della Robbia. The Della Robbia was an Italian family of sculptors and potters. They were active in Florence from the early 15th century and elsewhere in Italy and France well into the 16th. Family members were traditionally employed in the textile industry, and their name derives from rubia tinctorum, a red dye. Andrea was the Nephew of Luca della Robbia, who founded the workshop and invented the technique of enamelled terracotta. This technique is about evenly applying pigment suspended in tin-oxide glaze to the fired terracotta before refiring. The pallet was restricted and it was eg. not possible to reproduce flesh-tones, so these areas have been left unglazed, and would have been painted instead to create a more natural effect. |
| Bibliographic references |
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| Collection | |
| Accession number | 5401-1859 |
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| Record created | August 14, 2008 |
| Record URL |
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