Madonna with the Child

Gentile interrupted his work in Siena in order to paint a fresco of the Virgin and Child in the north aisle of Orvieto Cathedral, arriving in Orvieto on 25 August 1425. Since its restoration and the removal of drastic overpainting, the ‘Maest�’, as it was called, has emerged as one of his most monumental designs and, technically and colouristically, one of his most delicate works.

The figure of Saint Catherine, on the right side of the painting, was added to the fresco by Giovanbattista Ragazzini of Ravenna in 1586.