Madonna and Child with Mary Magdalene and St Dorothea 1325

Ambrogio Lorenzetti painted this altarpiece of the Madonna and Child with Mary Magdalene and St. Dorothea in Italy in the 1320s. As an altarpiece, this work would have been commissioned by the church and it reflects the social and religious values of its time. The altarpiece employs a triptych form, divided into three panels that separate the figures with the Madonna and Child in the centre, demonstrating their importance. The figures of Mary Magdalene and St. Dorothea have attributes of their identities, a pot and a bouquet of flowers respectively. The art of the period was highly regulated, and it served to affirm the authority of the church and its teachings. Lorenzetti’s altarpiece reflects the hierarchical structure of medieval society with the most sacred figures centrally placed. Examining the history of Sienese painting and the patronage of religious institutions helps us to understand better the social role of art and the ways in which artists like Lorenzetti shaped cultural values.