2754 - French Gothic sculptor (active c. 1360–1380 in northern France and Lorraine)

French Gothic sculptor (active c. 1360–1380 in northern France and Lorraine) Madonna Limestone (probably Savonnières, French “Pierre de Savonnières”), carved in the round, with the back A sculpture conceived from the front and a slight underview, depicting the crowned Virgin Mary seated on a profiled bench. She gently holds the infant Jesus with both hands on her left side, resting him on her knee or thigh. With childlike naturalness and innocence, the lively and spirited child reaches with his right hand toward Mary’s décolletage, while his left hand clutches a piece of fruit and he gazes at the viewer. Mary, on the other hand, has tilted her head downward to the left toward her son in deep, loving affection. Her delicately sculpted, oval face is framed by wavy hair and a veil, which falls in symmetrical yet fluid cascades of folds far down over her shoulders and back. The sculptor applied the same artistic and technical finesse and quality to Mary’s belted, floor-length dress and cloak, as well as to the child’s garment. Their stylized, yet by no means rigid, folds correspond to the highly lively expression of the sculpture as a whole. In addition to the subtle, soft modeling of the figures, another characteristic of the style is that Mary has placed her right foot on one of the folds of her robe. Comparable 14th-century sculptures can be found, among other places, in the Louvre and the Musée de Cluny. Two breaks on the shoulders of the Virgin Mary and the Child have been glued and restored; otherwise, the sculpture is generally in good condition with only a few losses; height: 46 cm. Provenance: from a private collection in southern Germany. French sculptor active circa 1360–1380 in Northern France or Lorraine. Limestone sculpture of the Madonna and Child. Two breakages on the shoulders of the Virgin Mary and the Child have been glued and restored; otherwise, there are only a few minor chips.