Artwork
Virgin and Child playing with a Goldfinch and holding a Sheaf of Millet
Virgin and Child playing with a Goldfinch and holding a Sheaf of Millet is a tempera painting by the Italo Byzantine artist Cecco di Pietro. It dates from 1390 and is held in the collection of the Statens Museum for Kunst.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
Together, these elements combine standard iconography of the mother and son with specific attributes that define this particular representation by the artist.
This religious panel presents the Madonna and Child as its central subject. The composition features the Virgin Mary holding the Christ Child, who is shown interacting with a European goldfinch. Uniquely, the Virgin also holds a sheaf of millet, a specific botanical element included alongside the sacred figures.
The inclusion of the goldfinch serves as a traditional Christian symbol often associated with the Passion of Christ, while the millet adds a distinct naturalistic detail to the devotional scene. Together, these elements combine standard iconography of the mother and son with specific attributes that define this particular representation by the artist.
Technique & Style
The painting is executed in tempera, a traditional medium used by Cecco di Pietro in the late‑14th century. The work depicts the Virgin and Child in an intimate domestic setting, with the Child holding a sheaf of millet and playing with a European Goldfinch, both symbols associated with the Passion and the Eucharist. The composition emphasizes a close, tender interaction, rendered through delicate linear drawing and a restrained palette of earth tones punctuated by bright accents.
Stylistically the piece belongs to the religious painting genre of the period, reflecting the devotional emphasis on the Madonna and Child found in Italian Gothic art. It is housed in the Statens Museum for Kunst.
History & Provenance
The painting titled Virgin and Child playing with a Goldfinch and holding a Sheaf of Millet was created by the Italian artist Cecco di Pietro in 1379. Executed in tempera, the religious work depicts the Madonna and Child alongside a European Goldfinch and a sheaf of millet. It is currently held in the collection of the Statens Museum for Kunst. The artwork measures 105 cm in height and 58 cm in width.
The painting Virgin and Child playing with a Goldfinch and holding a Sheaf of Millet by Cecco di Pietro is held in the collection of the Statens Museum for Kunst in Copenhagen. The work, created in 1379, is part of the museum's permanent holdings of religious art. While the specific inventory or accession number is not provided in the available records, the painting remains a documented piece within this Danish national gallery. No exhibition history is recorded in the current sources.
Overview
Created circa 1390 by Cecco di Pietro, a painter linked to the Pisan School, this tempera panel portrays the Virgin Mary with the infant Christ. The work belongs to the late medieval Italo‑Byzantine tradition and is presently conserved in the Statens Museum for Kunst in Copenhagen.
Context
The composition reflects the Trecento’s devotional trend of intimate mother‑child scenes, intended for private contemplation. By integrating both Pisan and Sienese visual vocabularies, the work illustrates the cross‑regional exchange that characterized Italian painting at the close of the 14th century.
Own this work as a print
Artist & collection
Artist
Cecco di Pietro was an Italian painter of the Pisan School. While his date of birth cannot be confirmed, there is some mention of a Cecco Pierri working with the painter Paolo di Lazzarino in 1350. If this was a…
