Marble bas-relief of the Virgin and Child - Italy 16th century

This marble bas-relief depicts the Virgin and Child accompanied by the Agnus Dei. This subject is quite rare, as it combines the Virgin, the Child and the Lamb on a cloud, all on a bas-relief that is quite thick. This allows the artist to open up certain parts, so we can define this work as being in high relief.
This sculpture comes from the collection of Jean Moreaux. This surgeon, an avid traveler, rubbed shoulders with collectors and antique dealers alike, which enabled him to develop a broad artistic culture. He built up an extensive "Haute Époque" collection, including Italian and Spanish ceramics, liturgical objects and Flemish tapestries. He later expanded his Christian collection outside Europe, bringing back a blessing cross made in Ethiopia.
We can relate our work to the relief showing the Virgin Mary, the Child and a devotee, preserved in the Villa Borroméo. The child is sculpted in profile and in a rounded shape, as in our work. In this sculpture, the child stands on a marble overhang that serves as a floor. For our bas-relief, the artist used the same technique, but this time it's the Virgin standing on an overhang.
We can attribute our work to the Lombardy sculptor and architect Briosco Benedetto. Briosco Benedetto, born in 1460 and died in 1517, took part in numerous projects. For example, he designed the portal of the Charterhouse in Pavia. Benedetto specialized in bas-reliefs, producing an impressive number, one of which can be seen in the S.Bardini collection in Florence.
The Virgin Mary, St. Anne, Christ and St. John the Baptist are sculpted in this bas-relief.
We can see certain similarities with our work. Firstly, Mary's veil is tied in folds that are turned and then tightened around her head, while the children's bodies are fleshy. Finally, the artist's particularity was to sculpt clouds in strategic places. In this work, there's one on each side of the canopy, and we can perhaps guess the faces of the puttos on it.
In our case, the Agnus Dei is seated on a cloud. Behind this animal, we can see a very fine cross, which is also present on the work from the S.Bardini collection, except that this time, the cross is at the foot of the Virgin and the Agnus Dei is beside it.
In this work, we can see the Virgin trying to hold back her child, who is trying to escape from her arms. Her face is benevolent, as she turns her gaze towards her son in a protective posture, her lips are thin and the tip of her nose is uneven. Her hair is held back under a veil tied around her head, but two strands escape to frame the top of her face.
Her head is detached from the background of the bas-relief to give an effect of depth, and the reinforcement is visible when we look at the work from the side.
She is dressed in a tunic, over which she wears a cloak that reaches down to her feet. The many folds of her tunic and cloak are reminiscent of the drapery seen on ancient statuary of goddesses. Mary is standing on a marble overhang, the tips of her shoe-clad feet visible as they protrude from her dress. One of her feet protrudes from the marble overhang.
Jesus is depicted as a child, naked and full of flesh. His hair is visible, despite the patina of age. He is trying to extricate himself from one of his mother's arms with his legs. The artist has taken care to sculpt the child's toe protruding between his mother's fingers. The child is intrigued by the lamb, sitting on its hind legs and floating on a cloud at his level. The lamb is recognizable by its wool, sculpted in little swirls, and its fine muzzle.
This lamb, visible on the bas-relief, could be the incarnation of the divine on Earth, standing on a cloud to show that he comes from heaven and extends his paw towards the newborn child. We can see that he is on the same level as Jesus, showing that there is no hierarchy between the celestial figure and God's creation, Man.
When John the Baptist refers to Jesus as "the Lamb of God", he is underlining the fact that he is the Messiah, whose birth and death will reveal the true nature of God. Jesus' ancestors included many shepherds (Isaac, Jacob and David), a rather prestigious profession at the time, symbolizing protection and authority, and often associated with royalty. The shepherd-king brings back the lost sheep.
Traces of the tools used to create this bas-relief can still be seen on the back of the sculpture.
This bas-relief is characterized by the figure of the "Agnus Dei" on a cloud, a rare and detailed representation that allows us to attribute it to the architect and sculptor Briosco Benedetto. On this work, we can see the important figures of the Bible: the Virgin Mary, Jesus her newborn child and finally God the Father personified in the form of a lamb.