Die Himmelfahrt Mariae

Lippo Memmi's Assumption of the Virgin (Die Himmelfahrt Mariae, c. 1340), now in Munich, is a devotional panel by Simone Martini's most important collaborator and brother-in-law. Lippo worked closely with Simone throughout his career, and the two painters jointly signed the celebrated Annunciation altarpiece in the Uffizi. After Simone's departure for the papal court at Avignon, Lippo became one of the leading painters in Siena, continuing the courtly, linear style that defined the high point of Sienese Gothic art.

Painted in egg tempera with gold leaf on panel, the Assumption displays Lippo Memmi's refined Sienese draftsmanship with elegant, flowing drapery and the sweetly idealized facial types inherited from Simone Martini. The ascending Virgin is surrounded by angels against a luminous gold ground, with delicate tooled decoration and the characteristically rich palette of blues, reds, and gold that distinguished the Sienese school.