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Mourning Virgin from a Crucifixion Group

1450–75
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 305
The heavy robes that envelop this somber figure recall the modest clothing of late medieval nuns. The deeply carved veil that casts a shadow over the face, the crossed hands, and the large size of the sculpture project a sense of authority. This statue of the Virgin Mary once stood at the base of a massive Crucifixion scene. There, it represented Christ’s sorrowing mother, a personification of the Church, and a powerful model for the unmarried women who lived in thriving monastic communities at the end of the Middle Ages.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Mourning Virgin from a Crucifixion Group
  • Date: 1450–75
  • Geography: Made in Touraine, France
  • Culture: French
  • Medium: Walnut with traces of paint
  • Dimensions: Overall: 56 x 17 1/2 x 14 1/2 in. (142.2 x 44.5 x 36.8 cm)
    Base: 1 1/4 x 17 3/4 x 16 5/8 in. (3.2 x 45.1 x 42.2 cm)
  • Classification: Sculpture-Wood
  • Credit Line: Gift of J. Pierpont Morgan, 1916
  • Object Number: 16.32.184
  • Curatorial Department: Medieval Art and The Cloisters

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