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Virgin from the Castle of Solsona

Romanesque

Anonymous

Second half of the 12th century or 13th century

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This image comes from the old Parish church of Sant Miquel de Castellvell, near the castle of Solsona. It is part of the founding collection of the MEV, and it already arrived without the image of the Child, the right hand, the fingers of the left hand, parts of the crown and significant areas of polychromy. All these defects, except for the loss of the Child, were intended to be rectified with intense restoration, probably during the first decades of the second half of the twentieth century. Maria, who wears dark shoes, wears a tunic adorned with ribbons and golden squares, visible only on her right leg and knee under an orange dress with a small triangular neckline; still on top, a dark cloak tied around the neck falls over her shoulders. The seat is bench-shaped with mouldings; the Child would have been sitting on the Virgin’s lap or on her left knee. While the very white skin and the schematic features of Maria's face are to be considered as a result of the restoration, other original features, such as the folds of the orange cloth on her right knee or, especially, the braids that fall down from her back to her knees suggest that this carving was conceived as a reflection, or at least under the influence, of the stone image of the Virgin of the Cloister of Solsona, attributed to the sculptor Gilabertus of Toulouse, one of the masterworks of Romanesque sculpture in Catalonia. The dating of this last statue, very controversial, could be placed in the second quarter or perhaps in the central third of the twelfth century; the image of Castellvell, consequently, should have been crafted later, in more or less decades according to the different authors.

Marc Sureda Jubany

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Location

Room4 ,Floor0

4 Romanesque Art

5-6-7-8 Gothic Art

Detalls de l’obra

PLACE OF EXECUTION

Solsona’s workshops

PERIOD

Second half of the 12th century or 13th century

Material

Poplar wood polychromed

Dimensions

62.4 x 25 x 20 cm

Origin

From Sant Miquel of Castellvell, Olius (Solsonès)

WORK NUMBER

MEV 1280