Altar panel with Mary Magdalene and John the Baptist
Zurich, Switzerland
Swiss National Museum
1506
Painting
Master of the violets
DEP-841
Egg tempera on spruce
H: 97.6cm, W: 121.5cm
«Spanweid» chapel Zurich, Switzerland
In the Middle Ages, lepers were segregated from the rest of society in lazarettos. In Zurich, these were located outside the city walls, close to running water, and had a chapel of their own. The St. Moritz lazaretto, which was built on the Spanweid in 1364, housed destitute lepers. The chapel received a new altarpiece in 1506. The inside of the panels depicts St. Mary Magdalene in costly fashionable clothing with a pouch and a cutlery holder. She is holding an open pot of ointment and promising the lepers hope of healing.
Zentralbibliothek Zurich
Documents
Permanent loan from the Zentralbibliothek Zurich as part of the «Morgengabe»
"Altar panel with Mary Magdalene and John the Baptist" in MWNF GALLERIES , Museum With No Frontiers, 2019. http://www.museumwnf.org/thematicgallery/thg_galleries/database_item.php?itemId=objects;GALLERIES;sw;Mus01;36;en&id=paintings
MWNF Working Number: CH_GAL_036