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Reliquary with Madonna and Child with Saints

Lippo Vanni (Italian, active 1344-1376) (Artist)
1350-1359 (Medieval)
tempera and gold leaf on wood, paper, relics
(Medieval Europe )

This triptych, or three-paneled altarpiece, once contained relics in the circular holes of the central section. Around the Madonna and Child in the places of honor are Saints Aurea and John the Baptist. On the wings, Gabriel announces the incarnation of Christ with the words written in Latin on his scroll which translate as, "the Holy Ghost shall come upon thee and the power of the Almighty shall overshadow thee," from the mass sung on the Feast of the Annunciation. The unidentified coats of arms are probably those of the donors. The delicacy of this work reveals Vanni's debt to Simone Martini.

Inscription

[Transcription] On central panel, below left saint: S[AN]C[T]A AURA; [Translation] On central panel, below left saint: Saint Aurea; [Transcription] On central panel below right saint: S[AN]C[TU]S IOH[N]ES BATTI[ST]; [Translation] On central panel below right saint: Saint John the Baptist; [Transcription] On left wing under left saint in black paint: MAR... (?); [Transcription] On left wing under right saint in black paint: S DOMINI; S[ANCTUS] DOMINI[CUS]; [Translation] On left wing under right saint in black paint: Saint Dominic; [Transcription]: On left wing in upper register on scroll: SPI[RITUS SANCTUS] ET VENIET [IN TE] ET VIRTUS ALTIS[S]IMI OB[UMBRABIT TIBI]; [Translation] On left wing in upper register on scroll: the Holy Ghost shall come upon thee and the power of the Almighty shall overshadow thee

Provenance
Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object. Learn more about provenance at the Walters.

Don Marcello Massarenti Collection, Rome [date of acquisition unknown], by purchase [1900 catalogue supplement: no. 49, as School of Fra Angelico]; Henry Walters, Baltimore, 1902, by purchase; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.

Exhibitions

2010-2011 Treasures of Heaven. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland; The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore; The British Museum, London.
1984-1985 Reliquaries and Ritual: Medieval Objects of Devotion. The Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore.
1962 The International Style: The Arts in Europe Around 1400. The Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore.

Conservation

Date Description Narrative
10/22/1984 Examination examined for exhibition
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Geographies

Italy, Siena (Place of Origin)

Measurements

Open H: 19 7/16 x W: 17 7/8 x D: 2 7/16 in. (49.37 x 45.4 x 6.19 cm); Center panel painted surface H: 8 13/16 x W: 7 13/16 in. (22.38 x 19.84 cm); Left wing H: 18 11/16 x W: 4 3/8 in. (47.47 x 11.11 cm); Right wing H: 18 13/16 x W: 4 1/2 in. (47.78 x 11.43 cm)

Credit Line

Acquired by Henry Walters with the Massarenti Collection, 1902

Location in Museum

Not on view

Accession Number

In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.

37.750

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