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Madonna and Child, the Crucifixion, and Saints
(Medieval Europe )
Painting during a period when artists no longer worked as anonymous craftsmen, Catarino signed this altarpiece prominently, "Catarino from Venice painted [this]." Juxtaposed with the donor's coat of arms (lower center, now missing), this signature aligns him with the patron, who kneels at Mary's feet. The patron shows his devotion through his commission, the artist through his skill. The glowing face on Mary's dress associates her with the "woman clothed with the sun" (Revelation 12:1) of the Bible. Both Mary and the Woman were understood to be symbols of the Christian Church.
Sts. Anthony Abbot and John the Baptist stand to Mary's right. To her left are Sts. Christopher and James the Great. St. Lucy, with her lamp, and St. Catherine of Alexandria, with her wheel, flank the Crucifixion with Mary and John at the top. The half-length figures, from left to right, are Sts. Ursula, Bartholomew, Clare, and Barbara. (Ursula and Barbara have been mislabeled but may be recognized by their attributes-Ursula holds an arrow, and Barbara holds a monstrance, a container used to display the consecrated wafer.)
For more information on this polyptych, please see Zeri catalogue number 34, pp. 56-58.
Inscription
Provenance
Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object.
Unknown family, Osimo (?) [date of acquisition unknown], by commission; Count Giovanni Orsi, Ancona, prior to 1855 [mode of acquisition unknown]; Piccoli, Venice [date and mode of acquisition unknown]; Henry Walters, Baltimore, 1908-1909 [mode of acquisition unknown]; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
Exhibitions
| 1962 | The International Style: The Arts in Europe Around 1400. The Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore. |
Conservation
| Date | Description | Narrative |
|---|---|---|
| 1/1/1900 | Examination | examined for technical study |
| 2/1/1946 | Treatment | loss compensation; stabilized; varnish removed or reduced |
| 10/1/1962 | Treatment | cleaned; inpainted; loss compensation; stabilized; varnish removed or reduced |
| 4/9/1984 | Treatment | other |
| 4/1/1991 | Examination | examined for condition |
| 11/1/2008 | Treatment | inpainted |
Geographies
Italy, Venice (Place of Origin)
Measurements
H with frame and original base: 69 1/2 x W: 73 3/16 in. (176.5 x 185.9 cm); Framed H: 69 1/2 x W: 73 1/4 x D: 4 3/4 in. (176.5 x 186.1 x 12.1 cm); Panel with Madonna, Child and donor, including reserved margins H: 46 1/4 x W: 24 5/8 in. (117.5 x 62.5 cm); Panels with SS. Anthony Abbot, John the Baptist, Christopher, James the Great, each approx. H: 40 3/8 x W: 11 5/8 in. (102.5 x 29.5 cm); Panel with Crucifixion H: 16 9/16 x W: 12 3/16 in. (42 x 31 cm); Panel with St. Catherine H: 15 3/8 x W: 6 5/16 in. (39 x 16 cm); Panel with St. Lucy H: 15 1/16 x W: 6 5/16 in. (38.2 x 16 cm); Panel with SS. Ursula and Bartholomew, approx. H: 12 5/8 x W: 23 1/4 in. (32 x 59 cm); Panel with SS. Clare and Barbara, approx. H: 12 x W: 23 in. (30.5 x 58.4 cm); Min. original panel D: 1/2 in. (1.3 cm); Max. original panel D: 1 in. (2.5 cm)
Credit Line
Acquired by Henry Walters, 1908-1909
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.
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
37.635