The Virgin and Child with Crown and Sceptre on a Crescent
c. 1460
Medium
Woodcut printed in dark brown through rubbing, hand-colored in red lacquer, yellow, and green, on cream laid paper
Dimensions
Image: 16.7 × 11.1 cm (6 5/8 × 4 3/8 in.); Sheet: 19.5 × 13.4 cm (7 11/16 × 5 5/16 in.)
Classification
woodcut
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
60645
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
This simple, luminous image of the Madonna and Child must have been printed in hundreds of impressions to justify the time and expense of cutting the block from which it was made. Yet only this one impression survives. Rather than being produced in a press, it was made through hand-rubbing, perhaps by monks or nuns who lacked a book-printing press.
About the Artist
Unknown
The artist designated as "Unknown" in our virtual museum's collection exemplifies a poignant chapter in art history: creators whose identities have faded into obscurity despite the enduring power of their work. With only one known artwork attributed to them in our holdings, this figure represents countless anonymous hands that shaped visual culture across centuries. Museums worldwide, including th...