"sits vertically with the dead Christ on her lap, his body appearing extremely small. The positioning of the two bodies creates the Pieta, which means pity in Italian and is a representation of The Virgin Mary mourning dead Christ. The Three Maries are circling the inner group expressing despair. Mary Magdalen is positioned at the feet of Christ in turmoil. St.John sits above The Virgin Mary and cradles her head in an attempt to soothe her. Joseph of Arimathea stands above the group holding the crown of thorns and three nails. Botticelli paints the figures in contorted and distorted poses."
"Death of the Virgin The Death of the Virgin Mary is a common subject in Western Christian art, the equivalent of the Dormition of the Theotokos in Eastern Orthodox art. This depiction became less common as the doctrine of the Assumption gained support in the Roman Catholic Church from the Late Middle Ages onward. Although that doctrine avoids stating whether Mary was alive or dead when she was bodily taken up to Heaven, she is normally shown in art as alive. Nothing is said in the Bible about the end of Mary's life, but a tradition dating back to at"
"the Virgin. Death of the Virgin The Death of the Virgin Mary is a common subject in Western Christian art, the equivalent of the Dormition of the Theotokos in Eastern Orthodox art. This depiction became less common as the doctrine of the Assumption gained support in the Roman Catholic Church from the Late Middle Ages onward. Although that doctrine avoids stating whether Mary was alive or dead when she was bodily taken up to Heaven, she is normally shown in art as alive. Nothing is said in the Bible about the end of Mary's life, but a tradition dating back"
"Stabat Mater (art) Stabat Mater (Latin for ""the mother was standing"") is a feature in the Crucifixion of Jesus in art in which the Virgin Mary is depicted under the cross during the Crucifixion of Christ. In these depictions, the Virgin Mary is almost always standing to the right hand side of the body of her son Jesus on the Cross, with Saint John the Apostle standing to the left. It contrasts with the swoon of the Virgin, where she is seen fainting. This is only seen from the late medieval period onwards. Stabat Mater is one of the three"
"Nativity of Jesus in art The Nativity of Jesus has been a major subject of Christian art since the 4th century. The artistic depictions of the ""Nativity"" or birth of Jesus, celebrated at Christmas, are based on the narratives in the Bible, in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, and further elaborated by written, oral and artistic tradition. Christian art includes a great many representations of the Virgin Mary and the Christ Child. Such works are generally referred to as the ""Madonna and Child"" or ""Virgin and Child"". They are not usually representations of the ""Nativity"" specifically, but are often"
"century, includes a letter M, representing the Virgin Mary under the Cross. The Marian Cross is also used in the coat of arms of Pope John Paul II, about which the Vatican newspaper, ""L’Osservatore Romano"", stated in 1978: ""the large and majestic capital M recalls the presence of the Madonna under the Cross and Her exceptional participation in Redemption."" Stabat Mater (art) Stabat Mater (Latin for ""the mother was standing"") is a feature in the Crucifixion of Jesus in art in which the Virgin Mary is depicted under the cross during the Crucifixion of Christ. In these depictions, the Virgin"
"Marian art, and well known Catholic symbolism such as the Miraculous Medal and Pope John Paul II's Coat of Arms bearing a Marian Cross. And a number of Marian devotions also involve the presence of the Virgin Mary in Calvary, e.g., Pope John Paul II stated that ""Mary was united to Jesus on the Cross"". Well known works of Christian art by masters such as Raphael (e.g., the Mond Crucifixion), and Caravaggio (e.g., his Entombment) depict the Virgin Mary as part of the crucifixion scene. Crucifixion of Jesus The crucifixion of Jesus occurred in 1st-century Judea, most likely between AD"
"Madonna of the Carnation The Madonna of the Carnation, a.k.a. Madonna with Vase or Madonna with Child, is a Renaissance oil painting by Leonardo da Vinci created around 1478-1480. It is permanently displayed at the Alte Pinakothek gallery in Munich, Germany. The central and centered motif is the young Virgin Mary seated with Baby Jesus on her lap. Depicted in precious clothes and jewellery, with her left hand Mary holds a carnation (interpreted as a healing symbol). The faces are put into light while all other objects are darker, e.g. the carnation is covered by a shadow. The child is"
"The Virgin and Child with St. Anne (Leonardo) The Virgin and Child with Saint Anne is an oil painting by Leonardo da Vinci depicting St Anne, her daughter the Virgin Mary and the infant Jesus. Christ is shown grappling with a sacrificial lamb symbolizing his Passion as the Virgin tries to restrain him. The painting was commissioned as the high altarpiece for the Church of Santissima Annunziata in Florence and its theme had long preoccupied Leonardo. In 1498, Leonardo probed into incorporating these figures together by drawing the Burlington House Cartoon (National Gallery). In 2008, a curator at the Louvre"
"an emotional appeal that links it to the Strasbourg ""Death of the Virgin"". In this sculpture, Mary is shown standing, holding her son, Jesus Christ, against her body. Unlike previous renditions of this couple, both are naturalistic, with recognizable facial features. As usual in most religious sculptural depictions of the Holy mother and child of this time, Jesus does not look like a baby, but rather a miniature adult. However, the artist tried to combat this by giving the child the mannerisms of an infant as he plays with his mother’s veil and holds a ball. Mary stands in royal"
"Christ Bearing the Soul of the Virgin Christ Bearing the Soul of the Virgin is a tempera on panel painting measuring 27.5 by 17.5 cm by Andrea Mantegna. It was completed around 1462 and is now in the Pinacoteca Nazionale in Ferrara. It shows Christ in an almond-shaped cloud bearing the soul of the Virgin Mary straight to heaven after her death, accompanied by cherubs - the soul is represented by a statuette, rather than the more usual symbol of a child. Roberto Longhi was the first to identify it as a fragment of the upper register of ""Death of"
"Saint Luke painting the Virgin Saint Luke painting the Virgin, (Lukas-Madonna in German or Dutch), is a devotional subject in art showing Luke the Evangelist painting the Virgin Mary with the Child Jesus. Such paintings were often created during the Renaissance for chapels of Saint Luke in European churches, and frequently recall the composition of the ""Salus Populi Romani"", an icon based on the legend of Luke's portrait of Mary. Versions of the subject were sometimes painted as the masterpiece that many guilds required an artist to submit before receiving the title of master. Though not included in the canonic"
"Virgin and Child (after van der Goes?) Virgin and Child (or Virgin and Child with Prayer Wings) is a small c. 1485–90 double hinged oil on oak triptych with a central panel by a follower or workshop member of the Flemish painter Hugo van der Goes or Gerard David. The work is currently held in the National Gallery, London with the central panel in its original frame. The central image is a tightly cropped and intimate portrayal Mary cradling the infant Jesus, who plays with a red rosary tied around his neck. The work is a composite, probably assembled in"
"on the far side, and the apostles and others gathered around. Often Christ holds a small figure that may look like a baby, representing Mary's soul. A prominent, and late, example of the subject is ""Death of the Virgin"" by Caravaggio (1606), the last major Catholic depiction. Other examples include ""Death of the Virgin"" by Andrea Mantegna and ""Death of the Virgin"" by Hugo van der Goes. All these show the gathering of the apostles around the deathbed, as does an etching by Rembrandt. Three minor anonymous artists are known to art history as the Master of the Death of"
"Assumption of the Virgin Mary (Rubens) The Assumption of the Virgin Mary or Assumption of the Holy Virgin, is a painting by Peter Paul Rubens, completed in 1626 as an altarpiece for the high altar of the Cathedral of Our Lady, Antwerp, where it remains. In Rubens' depiction of the Assumption of Mary, a choir of angels lifts her in a spiraling motion toward a burst of divine light. Around her tomb are gathered the 12 apostles — some with their arms raised in awe; others reaching to touch her discarded shroud. The women in the painting are thought to"
"common artistic representations of a sorrowful Virgin Mary, the other two being ""Mater Dolorosa"" (Mother of Sorrows) and ""Pietà"". In the Stabat Mater depictions the Virgin Mary is represented as an actor and spectator in the scene, a mystical emblem of faith in the Crucified Savior, an ideal figure at once the mother of Christ and the personified Church. The depictions generally reflect the first three lines of the Stabat Mater poem: The concept is also present in other designs, e.g. the Miraculous Medal and the more general Marian Cross. The Miraculous Medal, by Saint Catherine Labouré in the 19th"
"Virgin of Mercy The Virgin of Mercy is a subject in Christian Art, showing a group of people sheltering for protection under the outspread cloak, or pallium of the Virgin Mary. It was especially popular in Italy from the 13th to 16th centuries, often as a specialised form of votive portrait, and is also found in other countries and later art, especially Catalonia and Latin America. Usually the Virgin is standing alone, though if angels hold up the cloak, she is free to hold the infant Christ. The people sheltered normally kneel, and are of necessity shown usually at a"
"Mandorla A mandorla is an aureola, or frame, usually in the shape of a vesica piscis, which surrounds the figures of Christ and the Virgin Mary in traditional Christian art. It is distinguished from a halo in that it encircles the entire body, and not just the head. It is commonly used to frame the figure of Christ in Majesty in early medieval and Romanesque art, as well as Byzantine art of the same periods. The term ""mandorla"", from the Italian language name for the ""almond"" nut, refers to the usual shape. Sometimes however, especially in earlier depictions, the mandorla"
"the two figures. The vulture in the tree also possibly symbolises death. The figures' poses invite meditation on Jesus's death and passion, recalling Pietà compositions with the dead adult Jesus in his mother's lap. Madonna del Prato (Bellini) Madonna del Prato (""Madonna of the Meadow"") is a 1505 painting of the Virgin Mary and the Christ Child by Giovanni Bellini, now in the National Gallery in London. Originally painted as oil and egg tempera on wood, it was transferred to canvas in 1949, with damage in places. It presents a medieval iconography of the Virgin of humility seated before a"
"Mond Crucifixion The Mond Crucifixion (or Crocifissione Gavari; both names are after former owners) is a painting by the Italian renaissance artist Raphael. An early work influenced by Perugino, it was originally an altarpiece in the church of San Domenico, Città di Castello, near Raphael's hometown of Urbino. The painting shows Jesus on the cross, who is looking peaceful even though he is dying. There are two angels catching his blood in chalices. On Jesus' left kneels Mary Magdalene, with John the Evangelist standing behind her. On his right Mary stands, and St. Jerome, to whom the altar was dedicated,"
"The Madonna and Child with the Infant St. John the Baptist (Leonardo da Vinci) The Madonna and Child with the Infant St. John the Baptist is a lost composition by Leonardo da Vinci. The composition is known through a handful of paintings attributed to artists in Leonardo's circle. An original underdrawing by Leonardo may be preserved in a version in a private collection in Moscow, Russia. The painting depicts the Virgin Mary with arms outstretched and the infant Christ embracing a lamb. The infant John the Baptist is depicted holding a goldfinch, a symbol of the passion. The three figures"
"The Crucifixion (Cranach) Crucifixion is an oil painting by German artist Lucas Cranach the Elder. One of many versions of the subject painted by Cranach, this one, created in 1532, is now in the Indianapolis Museum of Art. The bottom half of the painting is crowded with figures, all symbolically arranged to the left and the right of Christ. On the right is the Virgin Mary, who is held by John the Evangelist, and Mary Magdalene is holding onto the Cross. The Good Thief and Longinus gaze directly at him, alluding to their salvation. There is a sharp contrast to"
"Pelagonitissa The Pelagonitissa (also known as ""The Virgin with the Playing Child"") is a type of depiction of the Virgin Mary (often in icons) in which the Virgin holds an infant Jesus in an abrupt movement, his head back and grabbing onto her. Pelagonitissa was developed in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries in the Byzantine Empire, particularly in Macedonia. The name ""Pelagonitissa"" refers to the city of Bitola, previously known as ""Pelagonia"". Pelagonitissa is often seen as a variant of the Eleusa icon in which the infant Jesus rests. One of the best-known examples is in the Church of St."
"Eleusa icon The Eleusa (or Eleousa) ( – ""tenderness"" or ""showing mercy"") is a type of depiction of the Virgin Mary in icons in which the infant Jesus Christ is nestled against her cheek. In the Western church the type is often known as the Virgin of Tenderness. Such icons have been venerated in the Eastern Church for centuries. Similar types of depictions are also found in Madonna paintings in the Western Church where they are called the Madonna Eleusa, or Virgin of Tenderness. By the 19th century examples such as ""Lady of refuge"" (e.g. by Luigi Crosio) were widespread"
"some extent, although some have had strong objections to some forms of religious image, and there have been major periods of iconoclasm within Christianity. Most Christian art is allusive, or built around themes familiar to the intended observer. One of the most common Christian themes is that of the Virgin Mary holding the infant Jesus. Another is that of Christ on the Cross. For the benefit of the illiterate, an elaborate iconographic system developed to conclusively identify scenes. For example, Saint Agnes depicted with a lamb, Saint Peter with keys, Saint Patrick with a shamrock. Each saint holds or is"
"Lamentation (Gerard David) The Lamentation of Christ is a painting of the common subject of the Lamentation of Christ by the painter and manuscript illuminator Gerard David, originally a wing of a now dismantled and lost altarpiece. It portrays the body of Christ wrapped in his shroud and being anointed. Mary Magdalene is at his feet, as the Virgin Mary holds him in her arms, weeping for his death watched over by Saint John. Four other grieving figures are present; they may be Saint Anne, the mother of the Virgin, and women who followed Christ. While its exact dating is"
"Death of the Virgin (Anonymous) The Death of the Virgin acquired in 1944 by the Legion of Honor Art Museum in San Francisco is an oil painting on a panel created sometime in the late fifteenth century in Swabia, Germany by an unknown artist, portraying the Virgin Mary surrounded by the twelve apostles. The subject has been painted by several other anonymous masters of the Death of the Virgin. The painting contains many key religious figures, as religious works were the most popular during the Middle Ages. Religious paintings would often be done as works of patronage to a church,"
"Virgin and Child with Saints Barbara and Catherine Virgin and Child with Saints Barbara and Catherine is a glue-size on linen painting by Flemish artist Quentin Matsys, probably painted c 1515–25. The Virgin Mary is shown on a throne, holding the Infant Jesus, between Barbara and Catherine of Alexandria, two saints popular in the early 16th century and considered the most important of the venerated Fourteen Holy Helpers. Jesus leans forward to place a ring on Catherine's finger, a reference to her vision in which she was to given Jesus by Mary in mystical marriage. Other indicators of the saints"
"of Christ and the Virgin Mary in traditional Christian art. It is commonly used to frame the figure of Christ in Majesty in early medieval and Romanesque art, as well as Byzantine art of the same periods. The term refers to the almond like shape: ""mandorla"" means . In icons of the Eastern Orthodox Church, the mandorla is used to depict sacred moments which transcend time and space, such as the Resurrection, Transfiguration, and the Ascension. These mandorla will often be painted in several concentric patterns of color which grow darker as they come close to the center. This is"
"known as the Death of the Virgin in Catholic art, where it is a reasonably common subject, mostly drawing on Byzantine models, until the end of the Middle Ages. The ""Death of the Virgin"" by Caravaggio, of 1606, is probably the last famous Western painting of the subject. <http://www.protobulgarians.com/Statii%20ot%20drugi%20avtori/Goran%20Blagoev%20-%20Pokraastvaneto%20na%20rusite.htm></ref> Dormition of the Mother of God The Dormition of the Mother of God (, ""Koímēsis Theotokou"" often anglicized as ""Kimisis;"" Bulgarian: Успение на Пресвета Богородица, ""Uspenie na Presveta Bogoroditsa"", Russian: Успение Пресвятыя Богородицы, ""Uspenie Presvetia Bogoroditsi;"" Georgian: მიძინება ყოვლადწმიდისა ღვთისმშობელისა) is a Great Feast of the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox and"
"Pietà (Southern German, Cloisters) Pietà (German: Vesperbild) a small painted wood sculpture dated to c. 1375–1400, now in the collection of the Cloisters, New York. Very little is known of it, except that is probably of southern German origin. The statuette emphasises the suffering of both the Virgin and Jesus Christ. Mary is shown in grief and mourning, holding the body of her son on her lap, as she leans over him and faces towards his crown of thorns. Christ body is emaciated, shrunken, decomposing and lacerated with the wounds of his crucifixion. Because of its small size and intimacy,"
"Coronation of the Virgin The Coronation of the Virgin or Coronation of Mary is a subject in Christian art, especially popular in Italy in the 13th to 15th centuries, but continuing in popularity until the 18th century and beyond. Christ, sometimes accompanied by God the Father and the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove, places a crown on the head of Mary as Queen of Heaven. In early versions the setting is a Heaven imagined as an earthly court, staffed by saints and angels; in later versions Heaven is more often seen as in the sky, with the"
"Madonna in the Church Madonna in the Church (or The Virgin in the Church) is a small oil panel by the early Netherlandish painter Jan van Eyck. Probably executed between c. 1438–40, it depicts the Virgin Mary holding the Child Jesus in a Gothic cathedral. Mary is presented as Queen of Heaven wearing a jewel-studded crown, cradling a playful child Christ who gazes at her and grips the hem of her red dress in a manner that recalls the 13th-century Byzantine tradition of the Eleusa icon (""Virgin of Tenderness""). Tracery in the arch at the rear of the nave contains"