Figures from a Retable of the Virgin and Child, with Saint Catherine of Alexandria, Saint Apollonia, Saint Margaret of Antioch, and (possibly) Saint Mary Kleophas
c. 1440/1460
Medium
alabaster with traces of polychromy, in a modern tabernacle with four replaced canopies
Dimensions
overall: 100 × 50 cm (39 3/8 × 19 11/16 in.) part of object (Virgin and Child): 62 × 19 × 6 cm (24 7/16 × 7 1/2 × 2 3/8 in.) part of object (female Saints): 25 × 7 × 3 cm (9 13/16 × 2 3/4 × 1 3/16 in.)
Classification
Sculpture
Department
CSD
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Florian Carr Fund
Accession Number
2014.60.1
Art Historical Context
This exquisite set of alabaster figures, carved in England around 1440–1460, once formed part of a retable—an altarpiece—depicting the Virgin and Child flanked by revered female saints: Catherine of Alexandria, Apollonia, Margaret of Antioch, and possibly Mary Kleas. The central Virgin cradles the Christ Child in a tender, intimate pose62 × 19 × 6 cm), while the smaller saint figures (each about 25 × 7 × 3 cm) standively nearby. Housed today in a modern tabernacle with replaced canopies, the overall ensemble measures 100 × 50 cm, preserving traces of original polychromy that once brought these...