227 - A tondo carved in low relief from fruitwood depicting the Carrying of the Cross; Jesus falls under the weight of the cross, with Mary and Saint John appearing in the background. Set within a frame carved with a frieze of laurel leaves.

A tondo carved in low relief from fruitwood depicting the Carrying of the Cross; Jesus falls under the weight of the cross, with Mary and Saint John appearing in the background. Set within a frame carved with a frieze of laurel leaves. Early 18th century Diameter: 11.6 cm (Minor imperfections on the frame) This medallion may have been part of a larger ensemble depicting the Seven Sorrows of the Virgin Mary. Devotion to the Sorrows of the Virgin is attested at the Schönau Monastery in Germany as early as 1221. Meditation on the Sorrows of the Virgin gained widespread popularity in Flanders and the Rhineland during the 14th and 15th centuries. Depicted here is the fourth Sorrow: the encounter between Mary and Jesus during the Carrying of the Cross (Luke 23:27–31).