The Virgin and Child with Saints Dominic and Aurea

Duccio di Buoninsegna, the great founder of Sienese Gothic painting, created this Virgin and Child with Saints Dominic and Aurea around 1313, near the end of his career. The inclusion of Saint Dominic indicates the panel was likely made for a Dominican church or patron, while the rare Saint Aurea suggests a specific local devotional context. Now in the National Gallery, London, this intimate panel demonstrates Duccio's unmatched ability to combine hieratic dignity with tender human emotion.

Painted in egg tempera on panel with gold ground, the composition arranges the Madonna and Child with flanking saints in a compact, harmonious grouping. Duccio's supreme refinement is evident in the subtle modeling of faces, the luminous ultramarine of the Virgin's mantle, and the intricate tooled patterning of the gold ground.