Artwork
The Dormition and Assumption of the Virgin (center panel)
The Dormition and Assumption of the Virgin (center panel) is an unspecified painting by Niccolò di Ser Sozzo Tegliaccio. It dates from 1358 and is held in the collection of the Museum of Fine Arts Boston. The central panel, titled The Dormition and Assumption of the Virgin, is a mid‑fourteenth‑century tempera painting on wood.
About this work
Overview
The central panel, titled The Dormition and Assumption of the Virgin, is a mid‑fourteenth‑century tempera painting on wood. Executed by Siena’s Niccolò di Ser Sozzo, it presents the Virgin Mary at the moment of her death and subsequent ascent, surrounded by a crowd of angels and mourners. The composition is set against a luminous gold ground, a hallmark of Italian medieval devotional art.
Subject & Meaning
The work illustrates the theological narrative of the Virgin’s Dormition—her peaceful passing—and her Assumption, when she is taken bodily into heaven.
The work illustrates the theological narrative of the Virgin’s Dormition—her peaceful passing—and her Assumption, when she is taken bodily into heaven. Mary lies on a richly draped bier while angels lift her upward, emphasizing both her earthly humility and her exalted status as the Mother of Christ. The surrounding figures, clothed in vivid reds, blues and whites, convey communal grief and reverence.
Technique & Style
Niccolò employs the delicate tempera technique typical of Sienese painters, applying fine, linear brushwork to render intricate garments and expressive faces. The gold leaf background creates a timeless, otherworldly space, while the composition reflects the influence of Lippo Vanni and the earlier innovations of Simone Martini and the Lorenzetti brothers, especially in the graceful elongation of figures and the elegant use of color.
History & Provenance
Active in Siena between 1334 and 1363, Niccolò di Ser Sozzo worked both as a panel painter and a manuscript illuminator. The panel entered the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, where it remains part of the museum’s medieval European collection, providing scholars and visitors insight into Sienese devotional painting of the mid‑1300s.
Artist & collection
Artist
Niccolò di Ser Sozzo Tegliaccio
Niccolò di Ser Sozzo (fl. 1334–63) was an Italian painter and manuscript illuminator. He generally has been identified as Niccolò di Ser Sozzo di Francesco Tegliacci, but recent research points instead to a Niccolò di…
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