The Virgin and Child

myminifactory

This is a cast of Benedetto da Maiano's Virgin and Child (1442-97), created around 1491-5. The original is housed at The Strozzi Chapel, the Church of Santa Maria Novella, Florence. Cast by Giovanni Franchi and Son in London (1866). Renaissance images of the Virgin and Child were celebrated in the 19th Century, when this cast was made. These tender depictions of the relationship between a mother and her child influenced the work of British artists. This cast reproduces a relief commissioned by the wealthy Florentine banker Filippo Strozzi for his funerary chapel.