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Birth of Mary

Subject
Late Gothic retable depicting scenes from the lives of Mary and Jesus
Author, school, workshop
Wit Stwosz (ca. 1448-1533)
Contributor
-
Style
Late Gothic
Date
1477-1489
Type
Altarpiece in the form of a pentaptych
Material and technique
Wood/carving, gilding, polychrome
Size
2,5 × 2,3 m
Signatures and inscriptions
-
Identity number
-
Department
-
Owner
Saint Mary's Basilica in Krakow
Copyright
Saint Mary's Basilica in Krakow
Location
Saint Mary's altar (by Wit Stwosz) in the presbytery
Description
The Conception and Birth of Mary are not mentioned in any of the Gospels. The literary sources for these scenes are the Apocrypha, texts very popular throughout the Middle Ages, but never included in the canon of writings of the Universal Church. The birth of Mary is accompanied by experienced women who receive the child, prepare a bath near the fireplace and prepare a meal for the exhausted midwife. The origins of this kind of imagery lie primarily in 15th century Dutch painting, which Stwosz probably knew from the autopsy.