Tempera on wood made by the italian artist Duccio di Buoninsegna (b. cca. 1255, Siena, d. 1319, Siena)

This tempera from the 14th century shows one of the first halo meetings.

Next to the angels, from left to right, are saints Catherine of Alexandria, Paul, John the Evangelist (left side), John the Baptist, Peter, and Agnes (right side), recognizable by their symbols and names painted on the lower edge (the inscriptions are missing only for Paul and Peter). On the bottom row are the four patron saints, also identifiable by their names: Ansano, baptizer of the Sienese and decapitated in the Val d'Arbia in the fourth century; Savino, a martyred bishop (left seide); Crescenzio, a boy martyred under Diocletian, whose remains were transferred to the Cathedral in 1058; Victor, a Christian soldier, native of Syria, proclaimed patron after 1288 (right side).

Above, in little arches whose frames have been lost, are the apostles distinguished by their abbreviated names against the gold background. Again from left, they are, Thaddeus, Simon, Philip, James the Great, Andrew (left side), Matthew, James the Less, Bartholomew, Thomas and Matthias (right side). The use of gold as a precious complement to the glorification of Mary is essential. The background, the haloes, the garments of the Child, of Catherine, Savino, and Agnes, the cloth covering the back of the throne and the Cosmatesque inlays of the latter, all dazzle the onlooker with their splendid glitter. The fabric of the garments and the backcloth axe embroidered with a continuous small golden pattern which gives the effect of real material.