The Dormition of the Virgin
Dowdeswell & Dowdeswell, London; Dr. Friedrich Lippmann, Berlin; his wife, until 1931; purchased by J.P. Morgan, Jr. in 1931.
Virgin on her death bed surrounded by different saints. An angel holds a palm. St. Peter is shown officiating at the funeral and is represented wearing the triple-crowned papal tiara. The Virgin and Child from heaven, upper center of the painting, observe the scene.
Crafted at the court of the Holy Roman Emperor Charles IV, who reigned in Prague from 1347 until 1378, these exquisite panels likely formed a diptych or hinged pair. They may have been commissioned by the emperor himself. In the scene of the three kings adoring the Christ child, the second magus has the features of Charles, and his red cloak bears the imperial eagle. In the panel depicting the virgin's dormition, or falling asleep, a euphemism for the virgin's death before her assumption into heaven. St. Peter wears the three-tiered papal tiara. These details allude to the delicate balance between sacred and terrestrial power. These panels are among the few works in this room that were purchased by Pierpont Morgan's son, Jack Morgan. He acquired them in 1931 after spending decades nearly doubling the size of his father's collection of medieval manuscripts.