Madonna Enthroned with Child, Six Angels and Saints Elisabeth of Hungary and Louis of Toulouse
On loan to the Museum of Sacred Art of Santa Maria Assunta in Figline for the Renaissance in Valdarno exhibition, the Madonna Enthroned with Child, Six Angels and Saints Elisabeth of Hungary and Louis of Toulouse usually adorns the side altar of the collegiate church. It is a work by the so-called Master of Figline, also the artist of a fresco in the sacristy of the Lower Basilica in Assisi, of another one in the Tosinghi Chapel in the Basilica of Santa Croce in Florence, as well as of the marvellous Crucifix, kept in Santa Croce too. The Master of Figline, a modern and eccentric personality, learnt so much from the early works of Giotto that Bellosi defined him “the most authoritative alternative to Giotto in Florence in the early 14th century”.
The presence in the painting of Louis of Toulouse, canonized in 1317, suggests a slightly later dating for this work. Furthermore, the saint next to Elisabeth of Hungary, wearing a Franciscan habit, has reinforced the critics’ opinion that this altarpiece had originally been conceived for the Church of San Francesco in Figline, even if its presence inside the collegiate church has been documented since the end of the 16th century.
Very refined and elegant, every detail recalls the
skill of a goldsmith or engraver, echoing the almost
“craftman-like” attitude of this master who probably
worked at some stained glass windows both in Assisi and
in Santa Croce in Florence. Compared with the Madonna
of San Giorgio, the Virgin from Figline seems almost
tiny on the monumental throne. She almost disappears
and merges into the other figures, losing the central
role in the scene. At the same time she is touching
because of her pearly complexion that recalls a pure
and radiant youth.
Master of Figline, Madonna Enthroned with Child, Six Angels and Saints Elisabeth of Hungary and Louis of Toulouse; after 1317; tempera and gold on a wooden panel; 298 x 175.5 cm. Figline, Collegiate Church of Santa Maria