This altarpiece comes from a chapel in the Certosa di Pavia, a Carthusian monastery near Milan. The central Virgin and Child are flanked by the Archangel Saint Michael on the left, standing on Satan. Raphael and the young Tobias are on the right. The Virgin's robe is ultramarine of exceptional quality.
The church was consecrated in May 1497. In 1499 Ludovico il Moro, ruler of Milan and the Certosa's most important supporter, applied pressure to get it completed. The Certosa had a large number of chapels.
The original altarpiece had an upper tier with God the Father flanked by the Virgin Annunciate and the Archangel Gabriel. The two top side-panels were supplied by another Florentine artist, Albertinelli, after Perugino had failed to paint them. Originally these three panels formed the lower tier of a six-panel altarpiece. They have been cut down at the bottom.
Central panel 113.7 x 63.8 cm; Wings each approx. 113 x 56 cm.
