'The Wilton Diptych', about 1395-9
by English or French School (?)
London, The National Gallery

This painting on two hinged oak panels (a diptych) takes its name from Wilton House in Wiltshire, where it was kept from the 18th century until it was bought by the National Gallery in 1929.

The outside of the diptych shows a white stag with a chain around its neck, and a shield showing the coat of arms of Edward the Confessor. On the interior panels, King Richard II kneels at the feet of the Virgin and Child and 11 angels. Behind him is Saint John the Baptist, Saint Edward the Confessor and Saint Edmund. The saints are recognisable by their attributes: the lamb of Saint John, the ring of Edward the Confessor and the arrow of Saint Edmund.

The size of the Wilton Diptych indicates that it was made as a portable altarpiece for private devotion.


© The National Gallery, London

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