Renaissance school, XVI century.

Renaissance school, XVI century.
"Virgin and Child as Salvator Mundi".
Polychrome wood carving.
In good condition. Patina and craquelure according to its age.
Measurements: 68 cm (height).

Polychrome wood carving representing the Virgin Mary seated with the Child, following the traditional model of the Sedes Sapientiae. Mary holds a scepter as a symbol of her royalty, while the Child carries the orb crowned by the cross, a clear allusion to her dominion over the world as Salvator Mundi.

The composition, of marked frontality and serenity, combines features inherited from the Gothic tradition -visible in the structural rigidity and symmetry- with an incipient search for naturalism in the faces and in the drapery. The folds, wide and rhythmic, build the volume of the figure and reinforce its monumental presence.

The polychrome, with shades of green, red and traces of gold, adds visual richness and underlines the symbolic dimension of the image, conceived to generate devotional closeness. The patina, in keeping with its age, not only testifies to its historical use, but also enhances its authenticity.

Due to its characteristics and scale, the piece must have been destined for a place of worship, probably a domestic altar or a chapel, where it would have had both a religious and a representative function.