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Maestà
Duccio · Renaissance & Mannerism
- Artist
- Duccio di Buoninsegna (c. 1255–1319)
- Date
- 1308–1311
- Dimensions
- 211 x 426 cm (front central panel)
- Medium
- Tempera and gold on panel
- Location
- Museo dell'Opera del Duomo, Siena, Italy
The Maestà ('Majesty') is the huge double-sided altarpiece Duccio painted for Siena Cathedral. Its front shows the Virgin Mary enthroned with the Christ Child, surrounded by a court of saints and angels against a shimmering gold background.
A closer look
The Virgin, wrapped in a deep blue mantle, sits on a marble throne at the centre, larger than all the other figures, as the queen of heaven and protector of Siena. Rows of angels lean on the throne, and the city's four patron saints kneel in front. The back was covered with dozens of small scenes from the life of Christ, full of lively storytelling. When the altarpiece was finished in 1311, the whole city carried it in a joyful procession from Duccio's workshop to the cathedral, with bells ringing and candles lit.