The Coronation of the Virgin
- Artist: Guido da Siena
- Date: c. 1260
- Medium: tempera on panel, irregular shape
- Museum: The Courtauld Gallery
- Collection record: The Courtauld Gallery website
Listen to the free audio guide
About this artwork
This is the “The Coronation of the Virgin” by Guido da Siena. Dating to about 1260, it’s a tempera on panel with an irregular shape. As one of the earliest works here, it offers a rare glimpse into a time when artists were rarely named. For centuries, pieces were seen as collaborative efforts, but by the time Guido was painting, a few painters began signing and asserting identity, setting a precedent that still echoes today.
Originally the top panel of a larger altarpiece, this piece would have hung high, above the nave, where the Virgin’s crowning by Christ was meant to inspire awe. In the 19th century many such altarpieces were dismantled, their panels sold separately. That’s why several works in this room are fragments of larger compositions, and why reassembling them is such a challenge—especially when the themes are so similar. Guido’s painting captures the moment of the Virgin’s ascent, a popular subject of the era and fitting for a high placement. The composition balances humility and triumph, with Christ’s gesture over a radiant Virgin, a visual sermon about heavenly grace.
See it in person
The Coronation of the Virgin 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.
