A Sculpture for Reflection on Annunciation Day
![A closeup view of a statue of the Virgin Mary with a painting in the background](https://cdn.sanity.io/images/cctd4ker/production/2d2f7e41b90047d5d1c32866b7d104417ca73183-1520x855.jpg?w=3840&q=75&fit=clip&auto=format)
Jean Guillaumet, called Jean de Chartres (French, Bourbon, first decade of the sixteenth century). The Virgin Annunciate, ca. 1510–20. White limestone with traces of polychromy, 38 x 12 x 10 1/2 in., 112 lb. (96.5 x 30.5 x 26.7 cm, 50.8 kg). On loan from The Hearn Family Trust and Charles Hack, 2018
Just in time for the Christian observance of the Annunciation on March 25, a beautiful, serene sculpture of the Virgin Mary is on view in gallery 640 at The Met Fifth Avenue. The Virgin Annunciate was originally matched with a now-lost figure of the archangel Gabriel; together, they formed a sculptural grouping that may have been installed over the entrance of a church. In the familiar Biblical story, the archangel appeared to the Virgin Mary to announce that she would conceive and give birth to the Christ Child, the son of God (Luke 1:26). Accordingly, the Annunciation is celebrated nine months before Christmas.
The poignant expression on the Virgin's face signals the psychological complexity of her response to Gabriel's prescient words. She turns toward the speaker, but is overwhelmed with the significance of his news as she solemnly takes it in. She raises her right hand in acceptance, tenderly touching her thumb to her heart.
![A profile view of a statue of the Virgin Mary](https://cdn.sanity.io/images/cctd4ker/production/972333cd17148488ad9ab6e8f6ebe8dfbcfcb91e-720x967.jpg?w=3840&q=75&fit=clip&auto=format)
This is test copy to make sure I'm not losing any data.
Detail view of the sculpture, as installed in gallery 640
The Virgin, on indefinite loan since December 2018 from the Hearn Family Trust and Charles Hack, now stands between the painted Annunciations of Hans Memling and Gerard David, artists working in Bruges at the end of the fifteenth and beginning of the sixteenth century. The stylistic characteristics of the sculpture are extremely similar to figures in paintings by the Moulins artist Jean Hey (also called the Master of Moulins), who worked at the same time. In fact, the Virgin Annunciate looks like a figure from a Jean Hey painting in three dimensions.
The Virgin Annunciate is on view at The Met Fifth Avenue in gallery 640.
Maryan Ainsworth
Maryan Ainsworth studied at Oberlin College (BA and MA) and Yale (PhD). Both Oberlin and Yale have extraordinary art museums, where Maryan first learned the importance of first-hand study of art objects. She joined The Met's staff in 1977 and has specialized in an interdisciplinary approach, combining art-historical issues with the technical examination of Northern Renaissance paintings. Her publications and exhibitions include monographic studies on Petrus Christus, Gerard David, Jan Gossart, and Pieter Coecke van Aelst, as well as The Met's early German paintings. Maryan has taught at Barnard College; as the Janson-La Palme Visiting Professor, Princeton (2017); and the Kress-Beinecke Professor, CASVA, National Gallery of Art (2018–19).
Selected publications
MetPublications: Selected publications by Maryan Ainsworth