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Trittico della Befa
Artist: Scuola senese
Year: Seconda metà del XV sec.
Current location: Pinacoteca Nazionale
Original location: Santa Maria Assunta alla Befa
DESCRIPTIVE INFORMATION
The work was originally presented as a dismembered triptych. Its iconographic composition was extensively documented in 1862 by Francesco Brogi in his historical inventory of the Sienese territory.
The central panel depicts the Madonna della Cintola. Mary, wrapped in an elegant blue mantle embroidered in gold, sits on a throne surrounded by nine seraphim, while eight angels play various musical instruments.
The lower panel depicts Saint James kneeling before the empty tomb of the Virgin.
The side panels depict the figures of Saint Sigismund and Saint Stephen, the latter initially unidentified.
The painting reflects the strong artistic tradition of the Sienese school, linked to its profound Marian devotion and the use of a gold background. The iconographic theme of the Madonna della Cintola draws on the apocryphal gospels and the Golden Legend, according to which the Virgin, assumed into heaven, dropped her belt on Saint Thomas as proof of the miracle.
Trittico della Befa