Barnaba da Modena
Around 1365–70
Egg tempera and gold leaf on wood
29.8 x 26.5 cm
Born in Modena in central Italy, Barnaba worked mainly in Genoa, where the older, Byzantine style was dominant at that time. This art is characterised by a preference for stylised rather than realistic representations. This can be seen in the use of rhythmic gold lines on the Virgin Mary’s robe to indicate its folds.
The work was made for private prayer. The Latin text along the bottom reads ‘Barnaba da Modena painted [this]’ and is a rare early example of an artist’s signature.