The Virgin in an Apse
Artist: Copy after Robert Campin (Flemish, ca. 1375/1379-1444)
Date: about 1490-1520
Dimensions:
H: 19 3/8 in. (49.2 cm); W: 14 in. (35.6 cm)
Medium: Oil on wood panel
Classification: Paintings
Credit Line: Purchased with funds from the Libbey Endowment, Gift of Edward Drummond Libbey
Object number: 1954.60
Label Text:During the 1400s and 1500s in Europe, Christian devotion to the Virgin Mary, mother of Jesus Christ, stimulated the creation of images like Virgin and Child in an Apse. The motif of Mary suckling the Christ child derives from a Byzantine icon type, while the music-making angels allude to many contemporary songs that praised her.
The Museum’s painting is one of more than 60 surviving copies after a lost original by Robert Campin, one of the founders of the Flemish school of painting. Its scale suggests that it was intended for use in private worship. The panel was recently restored and now displays its original vivid colors. The vases of flowers, as well as the delightful frog and rabbit, may be additions made at a later date. The rabbit, as a common symbol of lust, perhaps symbolizes the Virgin’s victory over the sins of the flesh.
The Museum’s painting is one of more than 60 surviving copies after a lost original by Robert Campin, one of the founders of the Flemish school of painting. Its scale suggests that it was intended for use in private worship. The panel was recently restored and now displays its original vivid colors. The vases of flowers, as well as the delightful frog and rabbit, may be additions made at a later date. The rabbit, as a common symbol of lust, perhaps symbolizes the Virgin’s victory over the sins of the flesh.
On view
In Collection(s)