Polyptych with the Virgin in Glory and Scenes from the Life of the Virgin
Unknown · c. 1320-1340
Among the vast output of Gothic ivory carvers, tabernacles like this one stand out for their elaborate design: small polyptychs with hinged wings that fold around a central section shaped like a miniature chapel. Under a canopy carried by two slender columns stands the Virgin with the Child, carved in high relief. She wears a short mantle drawn across the front, sways slightly on one hip and bends her full face toward her son on her left arm; a fold of the mantle covers her head beneath a crown of fleurons. The half-naked Child holds an apple in his left hand and rests his right on his mother's breast. The wings, read from left to right, tell the story of the Virgin's life beginning with the Annunciation.
Made in Paris around thirteen twenty to thirteen forty, the piece was a portable altar for private prayer, closed for travel and opened for devotion. Analysis has found traces of two layers of paint, the earlier one not original: red glazes, azurite blue and gold on an ochre ground on parts of the embroidered borders. The Louvre bought the polyptych in eighteen eighty two from the painter and collector Louis-Charles Timbal.
Did You Know? The little chapel folds shut like a book, so its owner could carry a whole altar in a travelling bag.
Unlock the Full Guide
Read every room and listen to every work in all museums with premium.