179. Virgin at the Calvary, 1220-1230.

Painted wood, height: 170 cm. Musée national du

Moyen Age-Thermes et hôtel de Cluny, Paris. Gothic.

 

 

These large figures were originally part of a group depicting Christ’s descent from the Cross. Early Gothic art displayed more pathos than art of the previous period; the sadness of these figures reflects the human tragedy of the event as well as the divine importance. Virtually life-size and brightly painted, the figures, in their original group, would have lent an intimate immediacy to the Biblical story to anyone viewing the sculptures.