Altarpiece facts for kids

A carved and painted altarpiece from Chur Cathedral in Switzerland dating from the Late Middle Ages.

An altarpiece is a special piece of art found in a Christian church. It is usually placed right above the altar, which is like a table where important church services happen. Altarpieces can be paintings, sculptures made from wood or stone, or even a mix of both!

What is an Altarpiece For?

Altarpieces serve several important purposes in a church.

• Drawing Attention: A beautiful altarpiece can make people curious and encourage them to walk closer to the altar. This helps them get a better view of the church service, hear the prayers, and listen to the priest.
• Focusing Thoughts: When there isn't a service happening, an altarpiece gives people something interesting to look at and think about. It can help them focus on Jesus or a particular saint whose story might be shown in the artwork.
• Encouraging Prayer: Looking at an altarpiece can inspire people to pray and feel closer to their faith.

What Do Altarpieces Show?

Most altarpieces focus on three main subjects, which are very important to Christian beliefs:

• The Virgin Mary and Christ Child: These altarpieces show Mary with baby Jesus. They remind Christians that God came to Earth as Jesus, starting as a helpless baby, to live among people. These artworks often connect to the Christmas story.
• Jesus on the Cross: These altarpieces show Jesus dying on the cross. They remind Christians that Jesus, who was pure and without sin, died a painful death so that people could be forgiven. These artworks are linked to the Easter story.
• Christ in Glory: These altarpieces show Jesus sitting on a throne in Heaven. They remind Christians to live good lives and turn to God, because one day they will see him in his glory. These artworks encourage people to live each day in a way that pleases God.

Saints and Other Stories

Many altarpieces also include other figures or smaller scenes.

• Saints: Often, you'll see saints standing around the main scene, like Mary and baby Jesus. These saints don't have to be people who lived at the same time as Mary. They are often the patron saint of the church or saints that the person who paid for the altarpiece especially liked.
• Bible Stories: Smaller, rectangular parts of the altarpiece often have stories painted on them. These might be stories from the Bible about the life of Jesus, or they could tell the life story of a saint.

How Big Are Altarpieces?

Altarpieces can be very different in size. Some are small paintings that might have been placed in someone's home. Others are so huge they fill an entire wall in a large cathedral. The term "altarpiece" is usually used for the bigger artworks. Smaller paintings are often called "Holy Pictures" or "Icons".

Famous Large Altarpieces

Here are some examples of very large and famous altarpieces:

• The Isenheim Altarpiece: This altarpiece is in Colmar, France. It was painted by a German artist named Matthias Grunewald. It has a powerful and realistic scene of Jesus on the Cross. Other parts show the joy of Jesus' birth and his glorious return from the grave.
• The Ghent Altarpiece: Located in Ghent Cathedral, Belgium, this is a magnificent painted polyptych. This means it's made of many pieces joined together with hinges, so it can be opened and closed. It shows Christ in Glory and includes many beautiful figures, like Adam and Eve. It was painted by Jan and Hubert van Eyck.
• The Great Screen of Winchester Cathedral: This is a massive carved altarpiece in Winchester Cathedral in England. It has Christ on the Cross at its center, surrounded by rows of carved saints. A similar altarpiece can be found in Southwark Cathedral, London.
• The Maesta: Painted by Duccio, this altarpiece is now in the museum of Siena Cathedral in Italy. It features the Virgin and Child in the middle, surrounded by rows of saints. The back of the altarpiece originally had many small pictures telling the story of Jesus, but these have been removed and are now displayed separately.
• The Transparente: Found in Toledo Cathedral in Spain, this altarpiece is truly amazing. It's a huge altarpiece carved from white marble with gold decorations. There's even a hidden window in the roof above it that lets bright light shine down to illuminate it!

See Also

• Madonna and Child
• Cathedral

Images for kids

• 

  The Ghent Altarpiece (1432) by Hubert and Jan van Eyck. This complex panel painting is a masterpiece of Northern Renaissance art.

• 

  Vigoroso da Siena's altarpiece from 1291, an early example of a painted panel altarpiece with framed parts.

• 

  Rothenburg: The Altarpiece of the Holy Blood, by Tilman Riemenschneider (1501–1505). This altarpiece has a central sculpted section and relief wings.

• 

  An altarpiece by Carl Timoleon von Neff at the Helsinki Cathedral.

• 

  A polyptych altarpiece, made by the workshop of the Lübeck master Hermen Rode in 1478-1481, at the High Altar of St. Nicholas Church in Tallinn, Estonia.