Who painted The Virgin and Child?

The Virgin and Child was painted by Master of San Torpè in 1297.

Where can I see The Virgin and Child?

The Virgin and Child is held by Gemäldegalerie Berlin.

Artwork

The Virgin and Child

The Virgin and Child is a paint painting by Master of San Torpè. It dates from 1297 and is held in the collection of the Gemäldegalerie Berlin. The panel, painted in tempera around 1297, presents the Virgin Mary cradling the infant Christ.

About this work

Overview

The panel, painted in tempera around 1297, presents the Virgin Mary cradling the infant Christ. Executed by the anonymous Tuscan painter known as the Master of San Torpè, the work belongs to the late‑thirteenth‑century Gothic tradition and is now part of the Gemäldegalerie collection in Berlin.

Subject & Meaning

Mary is shown in a dark robe trimmed with red, her head veiled, while the child is clothed in a red garment; both figures are surrounded by luminous halos, underscoring their sacred status. Two diminutive angels occupy the upper corners, reinforcing the devotional atmosphere of the scene.

Technique & Style

The composition relies on a flat, decorative background of red patterned fields intersected by black lines, characteristic of the International Gothic emphasis on surface ornamentation. The figures are rendered with stylised, elongated forms and a limited palette that highlights the symbolic colors of mourning and divinity.

History & Provenance

The painter’s notname derives from an earlier work once displayed in Pisa’s San Torpè church, linking the artist to the region’s artistic activity between roughly 1290 and 1325. The Berlin museum acquired the piece later, though the exact path of ownership remains undocumented.

Artist & collection

Artist

Master of San Torpè

The Master of San Torpè (active c. 1290 – 1325) is an anonymous Tuscan painter, active around Pisa in Gothic style. Works attributed to this painter are found in Uffizi Gallery, Courtauld Gallery (St Julian), and…