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Standing Virgin and Child

Attributed to Niclaus Gerhaert von Leyden North Netherlandish
ca. 1470
On view at The Met Cloisters in Gallery 13
Niclaus Gerhaert, a seminal artist of the generation preceding Albrecht Dürer’s, was presumably born in Leiden and was active in Strasbourg and Vienna, as well as in several cities between them. Three of his signed works are known and only four others, including this sculpture, have been seriously ascribed to him.

The statuette expresses a combined sense of drama, monumentality, and elegance through the extraordinarily accomplished carving of the fine-grained wood. The rhythm and balance of the complex drapery folds are set off by fine linear detail and textural contrasts. Among the naturalistic details that subtly enhance the forms is the delicate manner in which the Virgin’s fingertips press into the chubby flesh of the Child. Intended as an object of private devotion, and part of a long tradition in the use of boxwood for this purpose, it may well have been commissioned by a member of the imperial court in Vienna. The dark base, with a fictive Dürer monogram and date on the back, is of later date. Both arms of the Child and the section of drapery held in his left hand are replacements.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Standing Virgin and Child
  • Artist: Attributed to Niclaus Gerhaert von Leyden (North Netherlandish, active Strasbourg, ca. 1462–died 1473 Vienna)
  • Date: ca. 1470
  • Geography: Made in probably Vienna, Austria
  • Culture: Austrian
  • Medium: Boxwood, tinted lips and eyes
  • Dimensions: 13 1/4 x 5 1/8 x 3 9/16 in. (33.6 x 13 x 9.1 cm)
  • Classification: Sculpture-Wood
  • Credit Line: Purchase, The Cloisters Collection and Lila Acheson Wallace Gift, 1996
  • Object Number: 1996.14
  • Curatorial Department: Medieval Art and The Cloisters

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40. Standing Virgin and Child

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Reliquary Bust of Saint Catherine of Alexandria, Niclaus Gerhaert von Leyden North Netherlandish, Walnut with paint and gilding; limewood base, German
Reliquary Bust of Saint Catherine of Alexandria
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ca. 1465
Reliquary Bust of Saint Barbara, Niclaus Gerhaert von Leyden North Netherlandish, Walnut with paint and gilding, German
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Niclaus Gerhaert von Leyden
ca. 1465
Saints Christopher, Eustace, and Erasmus (Three Helper Saints), Tilman Riemenschneider German, Limewood, German
Saints Christopher, Eustace, and Erasmus (Three Helper Saints)
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Enthroned Virgin, Limewood with gesso, paint and gilding, Austrian
Enthroned Virgin
Austrian
ca. 1490–1500
Seated Bishop, Tilman Riemenschneider German, Limewood and gray-black stain, German
Seated Bishop
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