Altar frontal from Avià
The Altar frontal from Avià is a rare Romanesque altar frontal exhibited at the National Art Museum of Catalonia in Barcelona. It is the front of the altar of the church of St. Mary of Avià, in the county of Berguedà, later moved to MNAC Barcelona, while the church has a replica in place.
Also recorded as Altar frontal from Avia
Altar frontal from Avià
Didier Descouens · Public domain
- Period
- 1200
- Related practice
- tempera · panel
VALÉORINE Encyclopedia
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Documentary summary
The Altar frontal from Avià is a rare Romanesque altar frontal exhibited at the National Art Museum of Catalonia in Barcelona. It is the front of the altar of the church of St. Mary of Avià, in the county of Berguedà, later moved to MNAC Barcelona, while the church has a replica in place.
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wikidata · Q3025377 · wikipedia · Altar frontal from Avià
In this article
Overview
Overview
It is dated to the 13th century or earlier, and was painted by an unknown artist. The frontal is painted in tempera on a wood panel, with parchment overlaps, pastiglia stucco relief decoration and remains of additional vanished metal plates. It is divided into five areas, dominated by the central Virgin and Child. The figures are elongated, with Byzantine-style costumes and frontal poses. Four scenes surround the central figures: the Annunciation and Visitation, Nativity, the Epiphany and the Presentation of Jesus in the temple. Both the frame and the divisions between the compartments are decorated with gilded gypsum plaster, imitating precious metal.
Materials recorded for it are tempera and panel. The record gives 1200 as its date of establishment or first appearance. It is associated with Gothic art. Recorded genres are religious art. It is recorded in the collection of Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya.
Key facts
Key facts
• Title — Altar frontal from Avià • Artist — Unknown • Year — 13th century • Medium — Tempera on wood • Height Metric — 107 • Width Metric — 177 • Metric Unit — cm • City — Barcelona • Museum — Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya
Chronology
Dated record
Chronology
The full dated record · 1 entries
1200
Altar frontal from Avià first recorded.
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Guia del Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya.p. 25. MNAC, 2004.
- 2.The artwork at MNAC's Website
Bibliography printed in the source article · 4
- Castiñeiras, Manuel. Romanesque art in the MNAC collections. MNAC. 2008. 978-84-8043-196-5.
- MNAC. Museu Nacional D'Art de Catalunya. 1 March 2009. 978-84-8043-200-9.
- Carbonell, Eduard. Romanesque Art Guide: Museu Nacional D'Art de Catalunya. Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya. 1998. 9788480430395.
- Carbonell, Eduard. The Medieval Treasures of the Museu Nacional D'Art de Catalunya. Lunwerg. 1997.
References
Citations
References
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Secondary witness
Further particulars
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Further particulars
Open the remaining particulars
Altar frontal from Avià is recorded as made of tempera and panel.
Altar frontal from Avià is recorded as
Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 16 August 2026.
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