Detail of the Virgin and Child by Algardi in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, July 2023

Title: Virgin and Child

Maker: Alessandro Algardi (Italian, Bologna 1598–1654 Rome)

Date: ca. 1650

Culture: Italian, Rome

Medium: Bronze, silvered and gilt; black/blue marble

Dimensions: Overall (confirmed): 17 1/2 x 11 1/8 x 5 13/16 in. (44.5 x 28.3 x 14.8 cm); Base: 4 in. (10.2 cm)

Classification: Sculpture-Bronze

Credit Line: On loan in memory of Ferdinando Peretti, 2023

Accession Number: L.2012.41a, b

Algardi excelled in designing small-scale sculpture to be cast in metal. The delicate features of the Virgin and the Child, the careful arrangement of the cloak and the gracefully balanced composition are hallmarks of the artist. The model is known in several bronze versions, but this is the only one to have been silvered and gilt. The Virgin's face, hands and feet, and the Christ Child have been separately cast, sivered (now tarnished) and then attached to the Virgin's body. The cloak is textured with tiny marks made by punching the surface. Algardi's model was widely successful and repeated in other media.

Text from: www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/238977