The ivory-smooth white corpse of Christ in marble, set over against that festering corpse of his Vicar on earth, "black as a piece of cloth or the blackest mulberry," what a hideous contrast! VIII It may not be inappropriate to discuss the question of the Bruges Madonna here.

This is a marble statue, well placed in a chapel of Notre Dame, relieved against a black marble niche, with excellent illumination from the side.

The style is undoubtedly Michelangelesque, the execution careful, the surface-finish exquisite, and the type of the Madonna extremely similar to that of the Pieta at S.Peter's.

She is seated in an attitude of almost haughty dignity, with the left foot raised upon a block of stone.

The expression of her features is marked by something of sternness, which seems inherent in the model.