Virgin and Child

Virgin and Child, 1324-1339.

Mary holds Jesus in her left arm with her weight on her left leg creating a gothic S-sway pose. She originally wore a crown,she still holds a fleur-de-lis,(a heraldic symbol of royal France) which served as a reliquary container for strands of Mary's hair. The Christ Child reaches out to tenderly caress Marys cheek and holds an apple, a referance to Christ's role as the new Adam, whose sacrifice on the cross redeemed humanity from the first couple's fall into sin when Eve bit into the forbidden fruit.

(All information I've obtained about the piece I got from Art History vol.II by Marilyn Stokstad)