BICCI, Lorenzo di
(b. ca. 1350, Firenze, d. ca. 1427, Firenze)

Portable Triptych

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Tempera on panel, gold ground, 74 x 40 cm (central panel), 56 x 14 cm (each wing)
Private collection

The arrangement and combination of subjects in this devotional triptych were common throughout the Florentine Trecento and early Quattrocento, a tried and tested formula which found its origin in Bernardo Daddi's Bigallo Triptych of 1333. The left wing depicts the Nativity; the right wing shows the Crucifixion. The pinnacles above each wing form a single narrative representing the Annunciation. At centre, below a blessing Christ, the Virgin sits on a Gothic throne, adorned with a red and gold cloth of honour. A corporeal Christ Child sits upon her lap and, with an innovative gesture of tenderness, clutches her finger. Surrounding them are a group of six saints, which include John the Baptist and John the Evangelist.




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