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Shrine of the Virgin

ca. 1300
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 304
This rare devotional shrine manifests Christian belief in the miracle of the Incarnation, by which God took on human body and nature, uniting both human and divine in the person of Jesus. Closed, it is a statuette of the enthroned Virgin Mary nursing the infant Jesus. When opened, the shrine is transformed into an altarpiece showing a sculptural representation of the Trinity. (Only the figure of God the father remains; lost are the figures of Christ and the dove representing the Holy Spirit, the second and third persons of the Trinity.) Painted scenes of the Nativity decorate the wings.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Shrine of the Virgin
  • Date: ca. 1300
  • Geography: Made in Rhine valley
  • Culture: German
  • Medium: Oak, linen covering, polychromy, gilding, gesso
  • Dimensions: open: 14 1/2 x 13 5/8 x 5 1/8 in. (36.8 x 34.6 x 13 cm)
    Other (closed): 5in. (12.7cm)
    Other (figure of Christ): 9 5/8 × 3 13/16 × 1 9/16 in. (24.5 × 9.7 × 3.9 cm)
  • Classification: Sculpture-Wood
  • Credit Line: Gift of J. Pierpont Morgan, 1917
  • Object Number: 17.190.185a, b
  • Curatorial Department: Medieval Art and The Cloisters

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3035. Shrine of the Virgin

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