Madonna and Maestà

Enthroned Virgin and Child was certainly not the first politically motivated work within the Middle Ages to include representations of the Cardinal Virtues or the Madonna. In fact, the creation by Martorell was on the later end of such works, and it has been theorized that he, or the Catalan government patrons, had come in contact with works of the aforementioned nature thus being inspired to create the Enthroned Virgin and Child. The Maestà, by Simone Martini, is a prime example of an earlier artwork - created in 1315 - that may have contributed in inspiring the inclusion of not only the Madonna and Child but the Virtues as well, into Enthroned Virgin and Child.

Martini, much like Martorell, was commissioned to create the Maestà by the governing committee of Siena known as I Nove (or the Nine). His intent behind the depiction of both the Madonna and the Cardinal Virtues within the same painting was to represent the ideal of a just and good government. The Madonna, within both the Maesta and Enthroned Virgin and Child, is an embodiment of the ruling power of the respective state.[1] Both of the Madonna's are enthroned at the center, with Christ seated on their laps, and other figures fanned out on the sides.

Where the two begin to diverge is in the smaller details of the pieces. Martini includes classical, medallion framework with figures inside - similar to that used by early pagan artists - when creating the border of the fresco, while the Enthroned Virgin and Child is simply surrounded by a guardapolvos that may have once born the crest of the Catalan Generalitat.[2] Martini presents far more figures within his Maestà, giving the viewer a broader view of other important saints, angels, virtues and possible donors. 

The Maestà is the closest in visual similarity to Enthroned Virgin and Child especially considering the Madonna takes the place of an actual ruling entity. It is no wonder that almost a hundred years later Martorell borrowed elements of Martini's work to create the next generation's, Madonna and Cardinal Virtues masterpiece.

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1. Rubinstein, Nicolai. "Political Ideals in Sienese Art: The Frescoes by Ambrogio Lorenzetti and Taddeo Di Bartolo in the Palazzo Pubblico." Journal of the Warburg and Courtauld Institutes 21.3/4 (1958): 179-207. Web. (p 189).

2. Grizzard, Mary. Bernardo Martorell. Ann Arbor, MI: U.M.I., Dissertation Information Service, 1989. Print.