Madonna col Bambino e quattro angeli (early 1420s)

Angelico, Fra (c.1395-1455)

Madonna col Bambino e quattro angeli (Madonna and Child with Four Аngels)
early 1420s
Tempera on poplar panel, 81 x 51 cm
Hermitage MuseumSaint Petersburg

This type of Madonna was widespread in Florence in the late 14th and early 15th centuries and became known as the Madonna of Humility. Painted in bright and pure colours, it is suffused with a poetical mood. The tender fair-haired Madonna and the gracious angels with their coloured wings are charming. The tiny scale of the angels compared to Mary, as well as the gold background and the lack of spatial depth, are evidence of the medieval heritage. (SHM)