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Gothic art

Gold grounds, saints and the first steps towards painted space, in Europe before 1400.

18 works · hang 5442 ·

The rooms are imagined; every work on their walls is real.

Walk this roomRehang this room

First room, north wall

  1. Madonna and Child, by Duccio di Buoninsegna, ca. 1290–1300
    Madonna and ChildDuccio di Buoninsegna, ca. 1290–1300Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  2. The image features four figures depicted upright from head to toe, each with a halo. The person on the far left has short, curly hair, wearing a decorated robe and holding a book, gesturing with the other hand. Next to him, the second figure also has short, curly hair and wears a striped robe, holding a staff. The third person has short hair under a blue and white cap, in a striped robe, holding a book while gesturing. The fourth figure has curly hair under a pointed cap, wearing a robe with blue and red detailing, holding a book with one hand raised. The background is a parchment-like surface with decorative red lining at the border.
    Saints Cyprian, Vitus, Stephan, and CorneliusUnrecorded German maker, third quarter 12th centuryCourtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington
  3. The Assumption of the Virgin, by Bernardo Daddi, 1337–38
    The Assumption of the VirginBernardo Daddi, 1337–38Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  4. The Agony in the Garden, by Ludwig of Ulm
    The Agony in the GardenLudwig of UlmCourtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington

First room, south wall

  1. Book Cover, by Italian (Sienese) Painter
    Book CoverItalian (Sienese) PainterCourtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  2. Madonna and Child, by Simone Martini, ca. 1326
    Madonna and ChildSimone Martini, ca. 1326Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  3. Saint Julian, by Taddeo Gaddi, 1340s
    Saint JulianTaddeo Gaddi, 1340sCourtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  4. The Last Supper, by Ugolino da Siena (Ugolino di Nerio), ca. 1325
    The Last SupperUgolino da Siena (Ugolino di Nerio), ca. 1325Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Second room, south wall

  1. Saint Andrew, by Simone Martini, ca. 1326
    Saint AndrewSimone Martini, ca. 1326Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  2. Shown from the waist up, a woman wearing a garnet-red robe rests a book and a palm frond against a spiked wheel, all against a gold background in this arched, vertical painting. The woman’s light skin is tinged with pale green, and her cheeks are faint pink. Her shoulders face us, and she slightly looks up and off to our right with gray eyes under curved brows. She has a long, straight nose, and her small, full, bow-shaped lips are closed. Her wavy blond hair is parted down the middle and pulled back at the base of her head. Her red robe has a pattern of delicate diamond shapes and the underside is white, visible where it turns over around the neck. The robe is fastened with a round, gold disk the size of a DVD. Letters there read, “S.K.A.T.E.R.I.N.A.” around the perimeter of a four-lobed, red, blue, and gold geometric design at the center of the brooch. The sky-blue garment beneath her robe has a marine-blue collar. She clasps the palm frond in her left hand, to our right. The hand rests on the book, which is propped against the wheel in front of her, so the frond reaches beyond and above that shoulder, nearly to the edge of the painting. The wheel is edged with short, curving spikes like talons. The woman’s gold crown and round halo blend into the shimmering gold background, which is visibly cracked in some areas. The top of the panel curves up as if into an arch but is cut across the panel over her halo.
    Saint Catherine of AlexandriaBartolomeo Bulgarini, c. 1335/1340Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington
  3. Christ in Majesty with the Virgin and Saint John the Evangelist: Single Leaf from a Book of Rules, by Master of the Washington Coronation, c. 1310–20
    Christ in Majesty with the Virgin and Saint John the Evangelist: Single Leaf from a Book of RulesMaster of the Washington Coronation, c. 1310–20Courtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art
  4. The Crucifixion, by Pietro Lorenzetti, 1340s
    The CrucifixionPietro Lorenzetti, 1340sCourtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Second room, north wall

  1. Saint Catherine of Alexandria, by Pietro Lorenzetti, ca. 1342
    Saint Catherine of AlexandriaPietro Lorenzetti, ca. 1342Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  2. The Adoration of the Magi, by Giotto di Bondone, possibly ca. 1320
    The Adoration of the MagiGiotto di Bondone, possibly ca. 1320Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  3. Crucifix with Scenes of the Passion, c. 1230–40
    Crucifix with Scenes of the PassionUnrecorded Italian maker, c. 1230–40Courtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art
  4. A work made of opaque watercolor, gold leaf, and shell gold, with pen and red and white ink (recto), and pen and red and black ink (verso), on parchment.
    The Flagellation and The Crucifixion, from a PsalterGerman, about 1239Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago