Relief, The Virgin and Child, carved limewood, painted and glazed, Styria, ca. 1500-1520

The Virgin, crowned and wearing a wind-swept veil, is seated on a wide shallow throne, her head inclined towards the naked Christ Child whom she supports with both hands. He is standing on her right knee resting on his right foot, and is offering the angel next to him a pomegranate with his outstretched right arm. The Virgin wears a gown under her richly draped mantle which is held up by two hovering angels. The two angels on either side of the Virgin are dressed in belted, knee-length tunics. The group once formed probably part of a corpus of an altarpiece on a side altar.
The group is carved from several pieces of wood joined together. A vertical join runs from top to bottom through the left cheek of the Virgin and her left hand, revealing that the group of the Virgin and Child is mainly carved from two large pieces of wood. The angel on her left wawas carved together with the wind-swept veil, the latter being inserted at the elbow of her left arm, while a join at the left arm of the angel beneath the rolled-up sleeve indicates that the lower part of this arm was carved out of the main block. The angel on her right is carved separately, except the right arm which forms an integral part with the main block. Both the outer bench posts were carved separately and have been attached. Two irregularly shaped pieces were carved separately and have been inserted into the back of the bench. The lower part of the back has been slightly hollowed out. The mantle of the Virgin, her crown and the bench are gilded, the latter showing traces of gold over the bole. The lining of the Virgin's mantle is overpainted in blue, while her veil is white with an originally gilded border now seen only as a yellow glaze. The gown was originally silvered and later overpainted in red with a gilded collar and gilded cuffs. The partlet is white and was once lined with silver. The Virgin's face, and the body of the Christ Child, along with the faces, arms and feet of the angels show natural flesh tones with a later overpaint. The hair of the Virgin, the Christ Child, and the angel on the right were originally glazed in yellow, but were later overpainted in brown. The tunics of the angels were originally silvered with green belts. Four fingers of Christ's left hand are missing, as were three fingers of the Virgin, which have been replaced. The hair of the angel on the right of the Virgin has been damaged, its wings lost, leaving two slots at the shoulders, and the toes of the right foot are missing. The right foot and wings of the angel on the left of the Virgin are also lost, leaving two slots in the shoulders. The base of the throne is slightly chipped on the left and right. The back of the throne on either side of the Virgin has been restored. The crestings of the crown are broken. A label is attached to the back, inscribed in blue ink:" Madon[na] m[it] [de]m Ki[nd] [und] En[gel]n/ [Österr]ei[chisc]he [Staatsbahn]e[n]/1 St[ü]ck/1584" (Virgin with the Christ Child and angels/ Austrian State railways/one piece /1584). Traces of another label survive on the back. On top of the Virgin's head are a circular hole (diam. 2cm), an inserted dowel partly sawn-off, and two rectangular holes, one of it may have been used to fix a halo.

Given by Sir Thomas Barlow

Formerly in the collection of the Colli Brothers, Innsbruck. Illustrated as no. 17 in the first volume of the photo albums of the Colli collection ("Photographien von Verkaufsstücken des Antiquitätenhändlers Andreas Colli bzw. der Firma Gebrüder Colli 1904-1911 in Innsbruck aus den Jahren 1900 bis ca. 1925", preserved in the library of the Tiroler Landesmuseum at Innsbruck). Sold in 1913 from the Oertel collection in Berlin; sale catalogue, Lepke, Berlin, 6-7 May 1913, no. 144, pl. 85. Baxandall recorded Theodor Müller's communication that the sculpture was: "obtained by Dr Richard Oertel from a dealer in Innsbruck who in turn stated that it came from the district of Mariazell in Styria" (Baxandall 1974, p. 40).

Historical significance: The present sculpture was classified in 1913 (Berlin, Lepke sale, 6-7 May 1913, p. 39, no. 144) as "North Tyrolese" . When it entered the Museum in 1960 it was described as "German, early sixteenth century" (Departmental records). The statement of the dealer in Innsbruck (Colli) that the figure came from the district of Mariazell in Styria led to its being considered Styrian. Baxandall (1974, p. 40, no. 7) argued for a general origin in Austria, tentatively Styria. He saw parallels for the two angels in those in the relief of the Ascension of St Mary Magdalene on the left wing of the altarpiece in Waldburg in Upper Austria, dated 1517 (Tripp 1953, p. 106, fig. 130; Dehio 1977, p. 356); and for the general features he suggested that the altarpiece of the Coronation of the Virgin, dated 1507, in the Bischofskapelle of the Benedictine Abbey in Seckau (Hootz 1966, p. 387, pl. p. 311), also showed stylistic parallels, and seemed to support a Styrian origin. However it has been proposed that this altarpiece was made by a sculptor trained in the workshop of Hans Klocker, who was active in Brixen (Dehio 1982, p. 515, Hootz 1966, p. 388), which would mean that it is more likely to have been made in the Tyrol, rather than Styria.
Despite the similarities with Styrian and Tyrolese pieces, the present group is more likely to originate from the area around the Danube. The scheme of the drapery and the facial type of the Virgin, as well as the dynamism of the composition seem to be derived from an altarpiece in Mauer near Melk, dated 1509 (Koller 1997, fig. 596; Saliger 1997, fig. 1,5). Along with the altarpiece in Walburg (Tripp 1953, figs. 128, 129) and a Standing Virgin and Child, formerly in the collection of Hermann Schwartz in Mönchengladbach (Cat. Cologne 1960, no. 72, pl. 55; Beeh 1967, no. 53, p.116 fig),

This group was probably made by a sculptor from the circle of the Master of Mauer, an unknown sculptor who was active in Upper and Lower Austria around 1500-20.

This group of carved figures was probably once part of an altarpiece that stood on or behind the altar in a Christian church. The flowing drapery and the dynamic poses of the two small angels and the infant Jesus, who is holding a pomegranate, all contribute to its vitality.

The group was probably made in the area around the River Danube. The scheme of the drapery, the facial type of the Virgin Mary, and the dynamic composition, seem to be derived from an altarpiece in Mauer near Melk, dated 1509. This suggests that it was probably made by a sculptor in the circle of the Master of Mauer, an anonymous sculptor active in Upper and Lower Austria around the period 1500-1520. The same sculptor may also have executed a Standing Virgin and Child now in the V&A (Museum no. A.13-1960).

A.13:1, 2-1960