Coronation of the Virgin

Giovanni di Paolo's Coronation of the Virgin, painted around 1455 for the Metropolitan Museum, presents the celestial crowning of Mary by Christ amid the heavenly court. Giovanni di Paolo's treatment of this traditional subject reveals his characteristically original approach to sacred narrative The Virgin Mary occupied a central place in late medieval and Renaissance piety, venerated as intercessor and Queen of Heaven, her image produced in countless devotional objects for public and private u

The celestial court is arranged in a composition of Giovanni di Paolo's typical inventiveness, with his distinctive angular figures and vivid, sometimes jarring colors creating an effect of visionary intensity.