Two Miniatures, Possibly from a Manuscript

Master of St. Veronica

about 1400–1410

Tempera colors, gold paint, and gold leaf, Tempera Colors

J. Paul Getty Museum

A central figure stands on a pedestal, gesturing with one hand while holding a staff in the other. A crowd of onlookers and various animals are gathered below. These two miniatures representing Saint Anthony Abbot and the Crucifixion are painted on single leaves of parchment that have been cut along the contours of the miniatures. Perhaps intended to function as a pair of independent images, they may have formed a diptych, a small altarpiece in two parts, in a monastery or hospital in Cologne dedicated to Saint Anthony. Alternatively, they may have once been part of a manuscript, perhaps for this same hospital or monastery. The leaves are the work of the Master of Saint Veronica, one of the most important artists working in Cologne around the year 1400. Throughout the Middle Ages, the city