Madonna of the Nursing Child with Saint Joseph and John the Baptist
unknown
Basic information
- ID
- Ж-2084
- Author
- unknown
- Name
- Madonna of the Nursing Child with Saint Joseph and John the Baptist
- Date of creation
- 1st half of the 16th c.
- Technique
- oil painting
- Material
- wood oil
- Dimensions (height x width, cm)
- 22 x 45.5
Additionally
- Type
- painting icon
- Genre
- religious
- Plot
- Madonna with Child, Saint Joseph, and John the Baptist Nursing Madonna
- Provenance
- Collection of Lviv City Gallery
- Exposition
- Potocki Palace
Information about author
Object description
An Italo-Byzantine style (Coptic School) icon on wood, dating from the first half of the 16th century and depicting the Nursing Madonna iconographic type.
The image of the Virgin Mary breastfeeding the Infant Jesus has been known in sacred art since Early Christian times. The oldest surviving depiction of the Nursing Madonna is preserved in the Catacombs of Priscilla in Rome and dates back to the 2nd century. It is believed that the origins of the Galaktotrophousa iconography can be traced back to ancient Egyptian representations of the goddess Isis nursing her son Horus. The subject was exceptionally popular in both Byzantine and Western European art.
The icon from the Gallery's collection is a bust-length depiction of the Mother of God with the Child on a throne, flanked by two figures: Saint Joseph the Betrothed on the right and John the Baptist on the left. The gazes of both saints are directed towards the Infant Jesus.
The Virgin Mary is dressed in a dark green gown with a floral pattern and a rich red maphorion. The head of the Mother of God is inclined towards her Son, whom she is nursing. Her pensive gaze is directed past the viewer, whilst the Infant Christ looks at his Mother.
Saint John the Baptist is depicted in adulthood, with long dark hair and a beard. He is clad in a coarse brown hairshirt and holds his indispensable attribute – a slender reed cross.
Saint Joseph the Betrothed is a grey-bearded old man in ochre attire with a staff.
All the holy figures have identical large golden haloes, with Christ's halo featuring a traditional cruciform design.
The image of the Virgin Mary breastfeeding the Infant Jesus has been known in sacred art since Early Christian times. The oldest surviving depiction of the Nursing Madonna is preserved in the Catacombs of Priscilla in Rome and dates back to the 2nd century. It is believed that the origins of the Galaktotrophousa iconography can be traced back to ancient Egyptian representations of the goddess Isis nursing her son Horus. The subject was exceptionally popular in both Byzantine and Western European art.
The icon from the Gallery's collection is a bust-length depiction of the Mother of God with the Child on a throne, flanked by two figures: Saint Joseph the Betrothed on the right and John the Baptist on the left. The gazes of both saints are directed towards the Infant Jesus.
The Virgin Mary is dressed in a dark green gown with a floral pattern and a rich red maphorion. The head of the Mother of God is inclined towards her Son, whom she is nursing. Her pensive gaze is directed past the viewer, whilst the Infant Christ looks at his Mother.
Saint John the Baptist is depicted in adulthood, with long dark hair and a beard. He is clad in a coarse brown hairshirt and holds his indispensable attribute – a slender reed cross.
Saint Joseph the Betrothed is a grey-bearded old man in ochre attire with a staff.
All the holy figures have identical large golden haloes, with Christ's halo featuring a traditional cruciform design.
Legal regulation
Borys Voznytskyi Lviv National Art Gallery
