Virgin and Child with Saint John the Baptist in front of a townscape

Unknown

ca. 1520–30 · Sardonyx and gold · European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

The group echoes the new harmonies that Raphael and his school brought to painting. Suggestive comparisons exist in Raphael-esque Madonnas engraved by Giulio Bonasone and Gian Giacomo Caraglio (who doubled as an engraver of hardstones), but the graceful composition is apparently unique to this piece. The cityscape in the background is executed in intaglio. The irregular chestnut-hued translucent band around the edge of the stone is void, probably because it was meant to be embedded in a gold setting.

Artist

Unknown

Date

ca. 1520–30

Medium

Sardonyx and gold

Culture

Italian, Milan

Department

European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

Credit line

The Milton Weil Collection, 1938