1682. VIRGIN AND CHILD.
Francesco di Giorgio (Sienese: 1439-1502).
Francesco di Giorgio Martini was one of the most distinguished architects and engineers of his time. He wrote a treatise on "Civil and Military Architecture," and was a great authority, says Vasari, on "all instruments required for the purposes of war." There are two altar-pieces by him in the Siena Academy, and he also occasionally produced works in sculpture: "this he could do very conveniently, being a man of fair possessions as well as of remarkable ability, wherefore he did not work for the sake of gain, but for his own pleasure, and when he felt inclined, to the end that he might leave honourable memorials of his existence behind him."
"This quaint little picture represents the Virgin in the attitude of walking, leading the Infant Saviour by the hand. She wears a white dress, shaded blue, with a small gold pattern delicately painted upon it, and a rose-coloured mantle lined with dark green, and holds in her right hand a branch of roses. The drapery falls with much grace, and she looks down with a sweet expression to the Child" (National Gallery Report, 1899).