LabelAntonio Rossellino was among the most gifted sculptors of his generation, and his reliefs of the Virgin and Child are justly celebrated. This example, carved from mottled brown marble about 1455–60, is particularly successful. The Virgin sits on an elaborate throne, with scrolled armrests projecting in high relief. Both she and the Christ Child in her arms seem strangely subdued, perhaps contemplating Christ's future suffering. The protective, caressing gesture of the Virgin's left hand is especially poignant.

The surface is richly contoured and decorated, and the concern for finish extends to the background, which is enlivened by the heads and feathery wings of seraphim. Typical of painters of the period is the sculptor's attention to ornamental detail: the fringe of the Virgin's mantle, the haloes, and the strands of hair of both Virgin and Child are delicately highlighted with touches of gilding.

ProvenanceCount Cosimo Alessandri, Florence, (until 1877); Oskar Hainauer, Berlin, 1877-1906; [ Duveen Bros., Inc., London and New York, by 1909]; Benjamin Altman, New York (until 1913)