Virgin and Child

Maker Rogier van der Weyden (Flemish, ca. 1399 - 1464)

Additional Title(s)

Madonna and Child

Collections

European Painting Highlights

ClassificationsPAINTINGS

Dateca. 1460

Mediumoil on masonite, transferred from canvas, originally on panel

Dimensions20 9/16 x 13 5/8 x 1 1/2 in. (52.2 x 34.6 x 3.8 cm.) frame: 22 3/4 x 16 in. (57.8 x 40.6 cm.)

Credit LineThe Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens. The Arabella D. Huntington Memorial Art Collection.

Status

On view

Label TextThis masterfully painted work is at once a devotional object and a tender image of the interaction between a mother and her baby. The Virgin gently supports the Child, who stands unsteadily as he reaches out to grab a book, probably a Book of Hours that would have included meditations on Christ’s death. The Child seems more interested in playing with the clasps of the leather-bound volume than in inviting the viewer to contemplate His future sacrifice.

Object number26.105