Definition. The Maestà (Italian for majesty) is a short name used to describe a representation of the Madonna and Child in which the Madonna is enthroned in majesty as Queen of Heaven, surrounded by a court of saints and angels.

Overall, the composition of the altarpiece follows the conservative Sienese traditions of the Proto-Renaissance. The front of the Maesta, the side facing the congregation, was designed for devout contemplation and depicts the Virgin and Child in majesty, surrounded by a host of angels and saints.

The union of the classes and the offering of the keys of the city to the Madonna delle Grazie, made perhaps by Andrea di Niccolò in 1483. This board is important also because testifies the original location of the Maestà made by Duccio di Buoninsegna in 1311 in the Cathedral.

Rembrandt
The Raising of Lazarus/Artists

Van Gogh based this painting on a print by Rembrandt (1606-1669) – but only part of the print. He left out the main figure: Christ with his arm raised.

Painting
Maestà/Forms

Duccio’s date of birth is not known but he was active in Siena by 1278, and spent most of his working life there. He is unusual among medieval artists for being well documented. Duccio’s art is based on Byzantine sources, but was deeply influenced by the sculpture of the Pisani and by French Gothic metalwork.

The function of this piece was to be featured at the altar of the Cathedral in Siena. This is indicated through Mary (the patron saint of Siena) being featured as the largest element. It also had the purpose of showcasing how important religion was to the city of Siena.

Duccio’s Maestà was to set Italian painting on a new course, leading away from Byzantine art towards using more realistic representations of people in pictures. The altarpiece was commissioned by the city of Siena from the artist and was composed of many individual paintings.

Los Angeles County Museum of Art
The Raising of Lazarus/Locations
The Raising of Lazarus is an oil-on-panel painting by the Dutch artist Rembrandt from early in his career; it was probably painted between 1630 and 1632. The work depicts the Raising of Lazarus as told in the Gospel of John, Chapter 11. It is in the collection of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.

The miracle of the raising of Lazarus is the climax of John’s “signs”. They consider it as a “resurrection that will lead to death”, in that the raising of Lazarus will lead to the death of Jesus, the Son of God, in Jerusalem which will reveal the Glory of God.

Maestà, (Italian: “Majesty”) double-sided altarpieces executed for the cathedral of Siena by the Italian painter Duccio.

The Maestà Altarpiece Three characteristics have come to define Duccio’s style: the use of intricate detail, a delicate treatment of line, and a subtle shift toward humanism.

Interpretation of Maesta Altarpiece. A perfect example of religious art of the early 14th century Siena, the Maesta (from the Italian for “in majesty”, that is: Madonna and Child Enthroned with Angels and Saints) is a vast, horizontal style, two-sided wooden screen, originally designed for the high altar of Siena Cathedral.

Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. The Maestà, or Maestà of Duccio is an altarpiece composed of many individual paintings commissioned by the city of Siena in 1308 from the artist Duccio di Buoninsegna and is his most famous work.

The Maestà, or Maestà of Duccio is an altarpiece composed of many individual paintings commissioned by the city of Siena in 1308 from the artist Duccio di Buoninsegna. The front panels make up a large enthroned Madonna and Child with saints and angels, and a predella of the Childhood of Christ with prophets.

The front predella (a boxlike base) depicted events from Christ’s childhood, and the back predella recounted his ministry. The Kimbell Raising of Lazarus was most likely the final scene of this back predella, providing the climactic proof of Christ’s divinity, when he brings a man back from the dead.