Artwork
The Trinity in an Initial B
The Trinity in an Initial B is a tempera painting by the Sienese School artist Master of the Codex Rossiano. It dates from 1394 and is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
Executed in tempera and gold leaf on parchment, the work presents this complex theological concept within the form of an illuminated initial letter 'B'.
This manuscript illumination depicts the Holy Trinity, a central doctrine of Christian theology representing God as three distinct persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Executed in tempera and gold leaf on parchment, the work presents this complex theological concept within the form of an illuminated initial letter 'B'.
Created by the Master of the Codex Rossiano in 1387, the piece exemplifies the iconographic traditions of the Sienese school. The use of gold leaf likely serves a symbolic function, a common convention in medieval religious art to denote the divine nature and heavenly realm of the subjects portrayed.
Technique & Style
Created in 1387 by the Master of the Codex Rossiano, this work is a manuscript illumination executed in tempera and gold leaf on parchment. The piece measures 26.8 cm in height and 25.5 cm in width. Stylistically, it is associated with the Sienese school and depicts the Holy Trinity.
The application of gold leaf alongside tempera paints on a parchment support reflects the standard materials and techniques used for high-quality devotional initials of the late fourteenth century.
History & Provenance
The work was created in 1387 by the Master of the Codex Rossiano, a Sienese illuminator active in the late fourteenth century. The small panel, painted in tempera and gold leaf on parchment, depicts the Holy Trinity within an historiated initial B.
By the early twentieth century it entered the collection of Robert Lehman, who later donated it to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The museum’s records, reflecting Lehman’s prior ownership, list the painting as part of his bequest in 1969.
The Trinity in an Initial B is held by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, where it forms part of the Robert Lehman Collection. It was owned by Robert Lehman before entering the museum.
No exhibition history is recorded in the available sources.
Overview
The Trinity in an Initial B is a tempera painting from 1394, attributed to the Master of the Codex Rossiano. This work, now housed at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, exemplifies the Sienese School's artistic traditions. It presents a devotional image of the Holy Trinity, meticulously rendered within the confines of an illuminated manuscript letter. The piece offers insight into late 14th-century Italian religious art and its intricate decorative practices.
Own this work as a print
Artist & collection
Artist
Master of the Codex Rossiano is the conventional name art historians give to an anonymous Italian illuminator active in the late fourteenth and early fifteenth centuries.
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