predellas

Predella, from the Italian predella meaning “base” or “foundation,” is the term for the lower register of an altarpiece or polyptych. It usually takes the form of a separate horizontal panel or series of panels that run beneath the main scene.

The predella typically presents additional narrative scenes connected to the principal subject—often episodes from the life of Christ or the Virgin, saints’ legends, or miracles—sometimes including donor portraits. As a narrative extension, the predella helps tell a broader story without crowding the central image and can serve devotional or didactic purposes.

Form and production: Predellas were commonly executed as painted wooden panels in tempera, later sometimes in oil, and occasionally as carved reliefs. They may be the work of the same artist as the main panels or produced by assistants within the workshop; in some cases the predella reflects stylistic changes across the piece.

Historical context: Predellas were especially common in late medieval and early Renaissance altarpieces in Italy and northern Europe, dating from roughly the 13th to the 16th centuries. They were often created as part of a larger program of veneration, patronage, and narrative pedagogy.

Today, predellas are frequently separated from their altarpieces in the course of restoration, sale, or museum de-accessioning; when preserved, they provide valuable insight into workshop practice and regional styles.