The Votive Panel of Jan Očko of Vlašim
[Alternative names: ''Votive Picture of Jan Očko of Vlašim'', ''Votive Painting of Jan Očko of Vlašim'', ''Votive Panel of Archbishop Očko of Vlašim'', ''Votive Panel of Archbishop Jan Očko of Vlašim'', ''Votive Painting of Archbishop John Očko of Vlašim'', etc.] is a
Gothic panel painting
A panel painting is a painting made on a flat panel of wood, either a single piece or a number of pieces joined together. Until canvas became the more popular support medium in the 16th century, panel painting was the normal method, when not paint ...
now in the
National Gallery in Prague
The National Gallery Prague ( cz, Národní galerie Praha, NGP), formerly the National Gallery in Prague (), is a state-owned art gallery in Prague, which manages the largest collection of art in the Czech Republic and presents masterpieces of Cze ...
,
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...
. It is one of the most important artworks made in medieval
Bohemia. The panel was painted for the
Prague archbishop Jan Očko of Vlašim
Jan Očko of Vlašim ( cs, Jan Očko z Vlašimi; Jan VIII as the Bishop of Olomouc) (? – died 1380), from the family of the House of Vlašim, was the second Archbishop of Prague (1364–1378). He was the uncle to his successor Jan of Jenštej ...
who is depicted kneeling before
St. Adalbert of Prague in the lower part of the picture (
donor portrait). The author(s) of the painting is (are) not known. The style of the painting stands between the works of
Theodoric of Prague and the
Master of the Třeboň Altarpiece (who represents the so-called ''Beautiful style'',
Central Europe
Central Europe is an area of Europe between Western Europe and Eastern Europe, based on a common historical, social and cultural identity. The Thirty Years' War (1618–1648) between Catholicism and Protestantism significantly shaped the a ...
an form of
International Gothic
International Gothic is a period of Gothic art which began in Burgundy, France, and northern Italy in the late 14th and early 15th century. It then spread very widely across Western Europe, hence the name for the period, which was introduced by th ...
).
History
The panel was originally placed in the chapel of
Roudnice Castle, which belonged to the bishops and archbishops of Prague who used it as their residence. In 1371
[''"Item post hec die XV mensis eiusdem'' une 1371''consecravit capellam novam in magna turri in castro suo Rudnicz in honore beate Marie Virginis et sanctorum patronorum ecclesie Pragensis: Viti, Wenceslai, Adalberti atque Zigismundi."'' ] the chapel was consecrated in honor of the Virgin Mary and patron saints of Bohemia, and this is probably the date when the picture was finished.
[
]
Description
The picture measures 181 x 96 cm and it is painted on a panel made of lime wood
''Tilia'' is a genus of about 30 species of trees or bushes, native throughout most of the temperate Northern Hemisphere. The tree is known as linden for the European species, and basswood for North American species. In Britain and Ireland they ...
.
Notes
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Votive Panel of Jan Ocko of Vlasim
Gothic paintings
Czech paintings
1370s paintings
14th-century portraits
Paintings of the Madonna and Child
Paintings in the collection of the National Gallery Prague