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The Virgin and Child (Virgo Lactans)

Statuette
1275 - 1300 (made)
Artist/Maker
Unknown
Place of origin
England (made)

This ivory statuette of the Virgin and Child (Virgo Lactans) is possibly carved in England in the last quarter of the 13th century. The small sculpture is of fine quality, carved with real feeling for the soft undulation of the material, and the heads are highly distinctive.
Three dimensional images of the Virgin and Child were ubiquitous from the twelfth to the fifteenth centuries, produced in a wide range of materials and sizes and testifying the overwhelming devotion to th Virgin. Together with the Crucifixion, statues and statuettes of the Virgin and Child were the pricipal objects of devotion in the Christian Church, and vast numbers were made for ecclesisastical, monastic and private worship.


Object details

Categories
Access_to_Images 2003
Christianity
Sculpture
Religion
SCRAN
Object type
Statuette
TitleThe Virgin and Child (Virgo Lactans) (generic title)
Materials and techniques
Carved ivory
Ivory
Carving
Brief description
Statuette, ivory, The Virgin and Child (Virgo Lactans), possibly English, last quarter of the 13th century
Physical description
Carved ivory statuette of the Virgin and Child. The Virgin is shown seated on a backless throne, wearing a mantle held above the chest with a quatrefoil brooch and belted gown beneath. She offers her left breast to the Christ-Child and supports him with her left hand against his back. He rests his hand on her breast and holds an apple in his left.
Dimensions
  • Height: 11.3cm
  • At base width: 5.3cm
Object history
From the Webb Collection.
Subjects depicted
Apple
Mary (Virgin Mary)
Christ Child
Summary
This ivory statuette of the Virgin and Child (Virgo Lactans) is possibly carved in England in the last quarter of the 13th century. The small sculpture is of fine quality, carved with real feeling for the soft undulation of the material, and the heads are highly distinctive.
Three dimensional images of the Virgin and Child were ubiquitous from the twelfth to the fifteenth centuries, produced in a wide range of materials and sizes and testifying the overwhelming devotion to th Virgin. Together with the Crucifixion, statues and statuettes of the Virgin and Child were the pricipal objects of devotion in the Christian Church, and vast numbers were made for ecclesisastical, monastic and private worship.
Bibliographic references
  • Maskell, W., A Description of the Ivories Ancient and Medieval in the South Kensington Museum, London, 1872 p. 3
  • Inventory of Art Objects Acquired in the Year 1855. In: Inventory of the Objects in the Art Division of the Museum at South Kensington, Arranged According to the Dates of their Acquisition. Vol I. London: Printed by George E. Eyre and William Spottiswoode for H.M.S.O., 1868, p. 67
  • Longhurst, Margaret H. Catalogue of Carvings in Ivory. Part II. London: Victoria and Albert Museum, 1929, p. 31, pl. XXX
  • Williamson, Paul and Davies, Glyn, Medieval Ivory Carvings, 1200-1550, (in 2 parts), V&A Publishing, Victoria and Albert Museum, London, 2014 part I, pp. 52-53
  • Williamson, Paul and Davies, Glyn, Medieval Ivory Carvings, 1200-1550, (in 2 parts), V&A Publishing, Victoria and Albert Museum, London, 2014, part I, pp. 52-53, cat. no. 11
Collection
Sculpture Collection
Accession number
1598-1855

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Record createdDecember 15, 2003
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O87291/the-virgin-and-child-virgo-statuette-unknown/
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