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Madonna and Child

ca. 1505–7
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 604

Signorelli gave this painting to his daughter as a gift in 1507, possibly to celebrate the birth of a child. The artist was one of the protagonists of Renaissance painting and closely studied ancient art. This picture’s elaborate background draws inspiration from the ancient Roman Golden House of Nero. Discovered in the late 1400s, the home and its decorative motifs had a profound impact on the arts. Alongside this reference to Nero, one of the so-called Twelve Caesars of the Roman empire, the design includes the heads of emperors Domitian (upper left) and Caracalla (upper right).

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Madonna and Child
  • Artist: Luca Signorelli (Luca d'Egidio di Luca di Ventura) (Italian, Cortona, active by 1470–died 1523 Cortona)
  • Date: ca. 1505–7
  • Medium: Oil and gold on wood
  • Dimensions: 20 1/4 x 18 3/4 in. (51.4 x 47.6 cm)
  • Classification: Paintings
  • Credit Line: The Jules Bache Collection, 1949
  • Object Number: 49.7.13
  • Curatorial Department: European Paintings

More Artwork

More Artwork
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Head of a Man in Profile, Luca Signorelli (Luca d'Egidio di Luca di Ventura) Italian, Black chalk, pen and brown ink, heightened with white.
Head of a Man in Profile
Luca Signorelli (Luca d'Egidio di Luca di Ventura)
1490s
Madonna and Child, Vincenzo Foppa Italian, Tempera, oil, and gold on wood
Madonna and Child
Vincenzo Foppa
ca. 1480
Madonna and Child, Giovanni Bellini Italian, Oil on wood
Madonna and Child
Giovanni Bellini
late 1480s
Madonna and Child, Carlo Crivelli Italian, Tempera and gold on wood
Madonna and Child
Carlo Crivelli
ca. 1480
Madonna and Child Enthroned with Two Angels, Fra Filippo Lippi Italian, Tempera and gold on wood, transferred from wood
Madonna and Child Enthroned with Two Angels
Fra Filippo Lippi
ca. 1440

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