The Virgin and Child

This panel showing the Virgin Mary and the Christ child was made for the abbey of Klosterneuberg, an important religious site outside Vienna. It was in the apex of a tall cloister window that had scenes from the life of Christ in the lower panels. These windows were by the Master of Klosterneuberg, one of the most accomplished glass painters of the Middle Ages. In this example the artist achieved a sophisticated tenderness and delicacy in representing the subject – the two figures look into each other’s eyes as the child lightly touches his mother’s chin. The dark piece representing the arm of the Virgin may be a palimpsest (replacement painted on old glass).