Description
The Virgin holds the Christ Child against a luminous gold ground. Mary looks calmly towards the viewer, while the infant turns his head and clasps one of her hands. The contrast between her solemn stillness and his restless gesture brings an intimate human quality to the image.
The panel, numbered 583 in the Pinacoteca Nazionale of Siena, is dated around 1308–1310 and is considered one of the most convincing early attributions to Simone Martini. It was once the central panel of a polyptych whose wings have not been securely identified.
Her dark mantle, articulated with delicate golden striations, frames her pale face. A patterned band runs across her white head covering. The Child, wrapped in pink, adds a warm note to the restrained palette of dark fabric, gold and softly modelled flesh.
