Catalan School. Vall de Boí. Romanesque. Circa 1160 - 1175 "Virgin from a Calvary" Carved and polychromed wooden sculpture. 41 × 11 × 7.5 cm. The relevance of our sculpture is evident, as it is cataloged and reproduced in the monumental encyclopedia Catalunya Romànica, volume XXVI, page 373. According to Jaume Barrachina's file, the sculpture's location at the time of publication was unknown, and its existence was only known through an old photograph from the Arxiu Más (Mas CA-13 162). Barrachina places it geographically in the western Pyrenees and dates it to the second half of the 12th century or the beginning of the 13th century This piece is fully Romanesque in style, and notably, the Virgin retains her original polychromy. She is depicted frontally, with her hands crossed over her chest. Her shoulders are narrow, and she has an elongated, slender face with large, slanted eyes. She wears a simple red polychromed tunic and a blue mantle decorated with red rosettes, each outlined with white dots and bearing a white cross at the centre. The mantle falls from her head, covering it while revealing a little of her hair at the forehead, parted into two locks. One of her shoes has lost much of its texture; the other shows traces of black polychromy. On the reverse, a vertical hollow could suggest the figure was used as a reliquary. This magnificent image may be associated with significant examples of Catalan Romanesque sculpture, such as the Virgin from the Calvary of Tragó de Noguera, kept in the MNAC (Museu Nacional d’Art de Catalunya) in Barcelona. In that composition, the Virgin Mary and Saint John flank Christ on the cross. The similarities with this Virgin are striking, particularly in the way Mary is portrayed with both hands crossed and the highly schematic Romanesque style. That said, in our opinion, this sculpture is of superior quality and craftsmanship. We should also consider the Mare de Déu de Ger, also part of the MNAC collection and originally from the parish church of Santa Coloma de Ger. It shares significant stylistic similarities with this figure: the long, slender face, narrow shoulders, and mantle that falls from the head. Chronologically, they also belong to the same period. Returning to Jaume Barrachina's description, he notes that it is an image of the standing Virgin Mary dressed in a tunic, veil, and mantle. Her hands are crossed at her waist, and she holds her left hand with her right. This forms a characteristic image of a Calvary. Barrachina compares it with the previously mentioned Calvary of Tragó, which, as he specifies, is somewhat later than ours. There is another similar one that is also out of its original context and conserved in the Episcopal Museum of Vic (see Catalunya Romànica, vol. XXII, p. 90). 90). Barrachina concludes by stating that, due to the limited available material (he had available at the time) it is challenging to provide a precise stylistic approximation. Nevertheless, the elongated shape of the head, facial features, and the tip of the headdress on the forehead undoubtedly refer to a sculpture from the western Pyrenees. Provenance: Private collection, Spain. Reference Bibliography: Catalunya Romànica, vol. XXVI. page 373. Text by Jaume Barrachina.