The panel of the Virgin of Sapience (“Our Lady of Wisdom”) was commissioned by the Jurats of the city and painted in 1516 by Nicolau Falcó, the official painter of the city and one of the most renowned artists of his time. The antiquity and artistic quality of this work make it the most important of the university collection, taking us back to the time in which the Universitat was founded.

This meticulously executed work from the early Valencian Renaissance is characterized by its balanced composition and the idealized beauty of the figures. The panel shows the Virgin Mary seated with the Christ Child on her lap with his hands raised in blessing. The throne upon which they are seated is flanked on either side by angels. Seated in the foreground on the left is Saint Luke the Evangelist, at that time the patron saint of the Universitat, and on the right, Nicholas of Bari, who was also the patron saint of students. The image is completed with several phylacteries and references to Classical architectural elements.

Mary is represented here as the Seat of Wisdom, and is therefore a representation of the Universitat itself. Studies of the panel have revealed that the Virgin was originally painted with child, without the Baby Jesus on her lap. The Christ Child was added later during the execution of the work.