Bartolomeo Vivarini
The Death of the Virgin

Twelve apostles surround the bier and watch as Christ takes up his mother's soul, holding it before him in a possible allusion to "Throne of Mercy" images of the Trinity.

Of those kneeling in front, the first apostle on the left is St. Paul (balding from the forehead); on his right is St. Peter (balding from the crown). St. John the Evangelist is the beardless man on the other side of the bier.

Standing at left in a dalmatic, St. Lawrence holds his gridiron. Another deacon saint stands on the right, also in a dalmatic.

Gift of Robert Lehman, 1950

More of the Dormition