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1 of 253523 objects
The Virgin and Child ('The Colonna Madonna') c. 1848-58
Enamel on porcelain, giltwood | 74.2 x 58.3 cm (support, canvas/panel/stretcher external) | RCIN 404017
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A large porcelain plaque with polychrome enamelling of the Madonna wearing pink robes with a blue mantle and white shift, seated at three-quarters length before an undulating landscape holding a naked baby Christ on her lap with her right arm, looking down to Him whilst holding up a small book in her left hand. The whole framed in a German 19th century giltwood frame with vase-and-vine grotesque frieze at left and right, scrolling acanthus-and-vine frieze at top and bottom, bead-and-spindle, and anthemion-and-scroll pediment.
Prince Albert regarded Raphael as the greatest of the Old Masters, and according to an inscription on the reverse of this porcelain copy, this was his favourite picture of all. Raphael's original was once in the Colonna Palace in Rome but was acquired for the Prussian royal collection in 1827. The original is now in the Gemäldegalerie, Berlin.Provenance
Presented to Queen Victoria by Prince Albert, 24th December 1858; recorded hanging in the Prince Consort's Waiting Room at Windsor Castle in 1878
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Creator(s)
Acquirer(s)
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Medium and techniques
Enamel on porcelain, giltwood
Measurements
74.2 x 58.3 cm (support, canvas/panel/stretcher external)
134.4 x 87.0 x 9.0 cm (frame, external)
Featured in
ExhibitionVictoria & Albert: Art & Love: The Queen's Gallery, Buckingham Palace
The first exhibition to focus on Queen Victoria and Prince Albert’s shared enthusiasm for art