Sedes Sapientiae - Italy 14th century

This magnificent Virgin in Majesty, accompanied by the Infant Jesus, boasts a unique and astonishing iconography. Made from limewood, the sculpture is in a splendid state of preservation, with remnants of polychromy and gilding alongside scraps of fabric that reveal the marouflage.
A crown is placed on the Virgin's head, covered by a short veil that exposes her face. The face shows Mary's gentle features, and her almond-shaped eyes show a pupil painted black. Her lips, enhanced by a light red line, reveal a smile. Her cheeks are full, accentuating her joyful air. There are a few traces of polychromy on her face, rendering the Virgin's flesh pink.
She wears long clothes with a heavy drape and broken folds that fall to the front of the sculpture. Her right forearm is missing, and there is a hole where the two parts of the arm fit together.
The Virgin is seated on a throne, with her Son on her left knee. He wears the same playful expression as his mother. His curly hair is stiff, his eyes are crinkled and his cheeks are round, making his face puffy. His small mouth is smiling. The Child is dressed in a simple garment, a long tunic with short sleeves. He sits cross-legged, although his right foot is raised, creating a restless movement of the legs. His right arm, too, is missing, with the same cavity where the forearm used to be. In his left hand, he holds a round object, an orb, symbolizing his temporal dominion over the world.
Baby Jesus is supported by his mother's left hand, as he leans slightly forward, off-center on his knee. It is quite likely that Christ's missing hand is performing the gesture of a blessing. The back of the sculpture is hollowed out.
This sculpture corresponds to the Sedes Sapientiae type, meaning “throne of wisdom”, in which the Virgin Mary is enthroned with the Child on her lap, who may be seated or standing. Wisdom” is Christ's wisdom, so the throne can refer to the object or the Virgin on which the Child is enthroned. This is a more precise expression of the Virgin in Majesty genre, an important iconographic theme in medieval times.
The work is astonishing first for its size, then for the laughing expressions of the two protagonists. A match can be found in the Diocesan Museum in Cremona, Italy. The Diocesan Museum's Sedes Sapientiae bears many similarities to our work. Dated to the 14th century, it is attributed to an Umbrian sculptor. The cheerful expression of the Virgin and Christ, the Child's posture, the orb He holds in His hand, the heavy folds cascading down the front of the sculpture, Christ's tunic, all lead us to believe that the two works are contemporary, created by a sculptor from the Umbria region.
This sculpture is imbued with the sacred hieraticism of the Romanesque Majesty Virgins. This solemn rigidity is countered here by the warmth of the faces of the Virgin and Child.