Due to the refined, yet liberal carving, the well-proportioned figure and dignified expression, the female saint’s statue is one the most important reminders of the soft style that flourished in the Hungarian Kingdom during the reign of Sigismund of Luxemburg. The S-shaped posture and the decorative folds are the main hallmarks of this style. Dorothy is holding a basket, filled with roses and apples from the garden of her heavenly bridegroom. The original polychromy has all but completely disappeared and the colouring from the Middle Ages is known thanks to research by restorers: the tunics and gowns were gilded, lined with blue azurite. Traces have been found of the deep pink on the cheeks, while the basket was yellowish green.
The figure, found in Gömör County, with its pair Saint Catherine, probably stood around the Virgin Mary, accompanied by other saints, in the shrine of the same winged altarpiece. The original location of such a large altar – which was rare in central Europe in that era – may have been the sacristy in the Church of Saint Elizabeth in Kassa (today Košice, Slovakia).
This record is subject to revision due to ongoing research.
