UNKNOWN MASTER, Catalan
(12th century)

Enthroned Madonna and Child

12th century
Painted wood, height 53 cm
Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya, Barcelona

In the early Middle Ages there arose one of the most widely used sculptural forms of the Romanesque period: the enthroned Madonna and Child. It is often compared to the icons in Byzantine art because there is a strict hieratic quality to its frontality. Even the child who either sits or stands in front of Mary, emphasizes this moment of severity which did not begin to disappear until around 1200, with the increasing depiction of Mary turning towards the child.

This example comes from the church in Ger (Girona province).