Sandstone Figure of the Virgin in Mourning

A moving and finely carved sandstone figure of the Virgin Mary, shown in a posture of sorrow and devotion, her arms folded across her breast and her head gently inclined in grief. She is enveloped in a voluminous mantle, the folds deeply undercut and rhythmically gathered around her body, falling in elegant sweeps to the base. The figure kneels upon an integral circular plinth.
The sensitive rendering of the face and hands conveys both dignity and quiet anguish, hallmarks of late Gothic devotional sculpture from the Low Countries. Traces of original polychromy remain within the folds of the drapery and about the neckline, suggesting that the figure once formed part of a larger Lamentation or Calvary ensemble, intended either for a chapel altar or a private devotional setting.
The sculpture exhibits minor ancient surface losses and weathering to the face, consistent with age and exposure, yet these do not detract from the expressive power of the figure.

Provenance: AJM de Bruijn Art and Antiques in the late 1980’s, second image shows the sculpture in the background of their shop.