Saint Veronica with the Sudarium

The Master of Saint Veronica painted this Saint Veronica with the Sudarium around 1500 in Cologne. The subject shows Saint Veronica holding the veil miraculously imprinted with Christ's face. This master's sweetly devotional style, with its soft, rounded forms and gentle coloring, defined the Cologne school in the early 15th century. The oil medium allowed for rich tonal transitions and glazed layers of color that created luminous depth impossible with the older tempera technique. Such devotional panels served both liturgical contexts in churches and chapels and private devotional use in the homes of wealthy families who maintained personal altars and oratories.

Oil on panel with the Master's characteristic soft modeling and gentle color harmonies on gold ground. The iconic frontal presentation of the Holy Face on the veil creates a devotional image within a devotional image.