13 / 24
Image (left):
Virgin and Child,
Master of Elsloo, Netherlandish, c.1500-20, Boxwood with trace polychrome, Bequest of Mr.
and Mrs. Thomas F. Flannery Jr. 1984:02. (Above): LUMA Registrar Mary Albert with LUMA’s
Virgin and Child
on display
in the Rijksmuseum.
13
carving, the Virgin wears a long dress and shawl that
loosely covers the lower part of the body. Despite the
compactness of her figure, the weighty folds of Mary’s
garments give the object depth and visual interest. In
one of her hands, Mary cradles the Christ Child. The
baby Jesus holds the remnants of a grape cluster in his
left hand, signifying both the Eucharistic wine and the
blood of Christ. Perched atop a crescent moon, the
Virgin stands atop a human-faced serpent, crushing him
beneath her feet. This additional imagery denotes that
Mary represents more than just the Virgin in the piece.
Her position on the crescent moon, refers to the Apoca-
lyptic Woman in Revelations 12:1, “a woman robed with
the Sun, beneath her feet the moon.” Mary steps on the
serpent below who is a representation of Satan. With its
anthropomorphized female human head, the snake is
also symbolic of deceit. Additionally, the bearded face at
the base of the moon signifies treachery as well as vice.
This work is part of a larger grouping of wooden sculp-
tures credited to the Master of Elsloo. Originally intro-
duced by art historian J.J.M. Timmers in 1940, the Mas-
ter of Elsloo is thought to be an artist from Roermond,
a city in the current-day Netherlands. Some scholars
suggest that the Master of Elsloo was in fact Johan van
Oel, a carver in the Roermond during the same period.
However, this remains contested. There is also debate
amongst art historians around whether there was only
one artist or an “Elsloo Group.” This would suggest that
multiple artists, including the Master of Elsloo, crafted
sculptures that exhibit recognizable stylistic traits in
Dutch and Belgian Limburg region, as well as the nearby
German region. In terms of establishing a timeline for
these works, tree-ring research provides some insight
on the matter. In general, they range from as early as the
late fifteenth century until the middle of the sixteenth
century. LUMA’s
Virgin and Child on a Crescent Moon
is
a more mature style, dating to around 1520.
The piece is both unique and indicative of larger artistic
trends. Whereas most work in the Elsloo style consists
of oak, the sculptor of the
Virgin and Child on a Cres-
cent Moon
utilized boxwood, similar to the other pieces
on exhibit at the Rijksmuseum. Boxwood is of higher
quality than oak, as the latter is unseasoned and contains
more moisture. The commonalities this work shares
with others of the Elsloo style includes the hairstyle of
female figures; the facial features of the women and the
Christ Child; and painted accents through the work as
a whole. Mary’s hair in particular features a middle part
and symmetrical sets of rolls on each side of the face.
Like the other female figures, this piece displays a high
forehead, closed mouth, thin nose, defined eyebrows,
and protruding chin. The Christ Child features attributes
consistent with similar figurines of the period, such
as a wide forehead, prominent chin, and head of curly
hair. Additionally, painted accents feature throughout
this particular piece. Artists from this time period often
created polychrome figurines for religious devotion; this
particular piece features painted accents throughout.
LUMA’s
Virgin and Child on the Crescent Moon
gives a
glimpse into the early 16th-century Netherlands and the
superb craftsmanship of the Esloo style. We were de-
lighted to share such an exquisite part of our permanent
collection with our friends in the Netherlands and are
glad to have it back on display.
The Virgin and Child on
the Crescent Moon
, like all pieces in our LUMA collec-
tion, highlights the importance of spirituality in our ev-
eryday lives and represents the larger mission of LUMA,
to illuminate the spirit through art.