The Cloisters St. Andrew Altarpiece: Detail, the Madonna and Child with St. Catherine and St. Mary Magdalene

1420-30
Provenance: Catalunya
The Cloisters, New York City

Instead of a throne, Mary sits on a low wall that separates a "heavenly" scene with angels from a more humble one where humans sit on the floor. This reflects the Catholic concept of her role as mediatrix between Christ and mankind.

The child hands a ring to St. Catherine of Alexandria, a common feature in late medieval images of that saint. She holds the palm branch emblematic of her martyrdom. The child is fully dressed, although in most other images in the 15th century he is naked.

Mary Magdalene sits in the lower right corner with her long, blond hair and what appears to be the ointment jar that is her attribute. The jar, however, is oddly shaped.

View the entire altarpiece.
Read more about the Madonna and Child, St. Catherine, and St. Mary Magdalene.

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Photographed at the Cloisters by Richard Stracke, shared under Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license.