Bust of the Virgin

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

With regal elegance and a tender face, this image of the Virgin constituted the upper portion of a standing or enthroned figure that would have been accompanied by the child Jesus. Artists working in clay would normally divide a large sculpture horizontally with a wire before firing to ensure that it dried evenly. The sections would then be reassembled with mortar disguised under the paint. This is the only terracotta sculpture attributed to medieval Prague.

Medieval Art and The Cloisters

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Museum's collection of medieval and Byzantine art is among the most comprehensive in the world. Displayed in both The Met Fifth Avenue and in the Museum's branch in northern Manhattan, The Met Cloisters, the collection encompasses the art of the Mediterranean and Europe from the fall of Rome in the fourth century to the beginning of the Renaissance in the early sixteenth century. It also includes pre-medieval European works of art created during the Bronze Age and early Iron Age.

Metropolitan Museum of Art