Virgin and Child

Alexander of Abingdon

ca. 1275–1325 · Caen Limestone · Medieval Art

Discovered only in the 1980s in Newbury (Berkshire), this imposing sculpture is closely related to the figural decoration on the famed wayside crosses erected along the route of the funeral procession of Queen Eleanor of Castile, the beloved wife of Edward I, who died in 1290. Alexander of Abingdon, the leading sculptor of the court, created some of them.

Artist

Alexander of Abingdon

Date

ca. 1275–1325

Medium

Caen Limestone

Culture

British

Department

Medieval Art

Credit line

Purchase, Edward J. Gallagher Jr. Bequest, in memory of his father, Edward Joseph Gallagher, his mother, Ann Hay Gallagher, and his son, Edward Joseph Gallagher III; and Caroline Howard Hyman Gift, 2003