The Blessed Margaret and Saint Cecilia (left panel)
- Artist: Fra Angelico
- Date: 1420 - 1429
- Medium: tempera on panel
- Museum: The Courtauld Gallery
- Collection record: The Courtauld Gallery website
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About this artwork
This is the “The Blessed Margaret and Saint Cecilia (left panel)” by Fra Angelico. Painted between 1420 and 1429 in tempera on panel, it belongs to a trio of panels that once formed the predella of the main altar of a Florentine convent of Dominican nuns devoted to Saint Peter Martyr. In this left panel Fra Angelico places two roundels: on the left a Dominican nun—most likely Catherine of Siena—wearing the order’s habit, and on the right Saint Cecilia, the patron saint of musicians, depicted with the lily of purity and a small musical instrument. The intimacy of their gestures suggests a close spiritual kinship; the nun’s gaze meets Cecilia’s, perhaps implying that the convent’s devotion to both figures was intertwined.
The other two panels of the predella show the dead Christ, flanked by Mary Magdalene and Saint John the Evangelist, and on the far right the saints Catherine of Alexandria and Agnes. The inclusion of these particular saints hints at the relics housed within the convent’s walls, reflecting the medieval practice of aligning devotional art with the tangible treasures of the community.
Fra Angelico’s use of light is subtle; the tempera glaze gives the figures a luminous, almost translucent quality that draws the eye toward the central, serene faces. The careful composition balances the solemnity of the saints with the gentle, almost conversational tone of their interactions, offering a quiet, reverent experience that has echoed through the centuries.
See it in person
The Blessed Margaret and Saint Cecilia (left panel) hangs in The Courtauld Gallery at Somerset House, London. Point your phone at any artwork there and audioguide.london plays a free audio guide in six languages — no app download needed.
