Virgin Portraits. Klaus H. Carl

on wood, 355 × 255 cm

      Uffizi, Florence

      This book offers the reader some of the best art that has been produced through the centuries to celebrate Mary.

      The works of art were created by many different individuals who tried to convey and explain, from their different points of view and using the visual language available to them, the depth of the feelings and convictions of their cultures in respect of this Great Mother.

      The Madonna of the Pomegranate

      Sandro Botticelli, 1487

      Tempera on wood, diameter: 143.5 cm

      Uffizi, Florence

      The earliest images of Mary were probably introduced into early Christian iconography during the second and third centuries. This was a time in human history when society was committed to relieving women of their remaining rights and powers; vestiges of the old matriarchal rights were banned from the prevalent patriarchal order.

      The Annunciation

      Sandro Botticelli, 1489

      Tempera on wood, 150 × 156 cm

      Uffizi, Florence

      The officially accepted Gospels of the New Testament were written by males for a patriarchal social system, and very few references about the Madonna were made in these texts. Neither Mary nor her son, Jesus, wrote any material, and the first official Gospel, believed to be written by Mark, was completed in its unedited version in 66.

      The Madonna of the Caves

      Andrea Mantegna, 1489-1490

      Tempera on wood, 29 × 21.5 cm

      Uffizi, Florence

      Apparently the second official version of the Gospels was written by Luke in 80, shortly followed by Matthew’s version. It is possible, however, that John’s version was in fact the earliest one, at around 37, since it includes more details, which have led many to believe that perhaps this version may be closer to the real occurrences of the events in the lives of Mary and her son, Jesus.

      The Madonna and Child with Two Angels

      Hans Memling, 1490-1491

      Oil on wood, 57 × 42 cm

      Uffizi, Florence

      These accounts, primarily from the story of Jesus, mentioned his mother on very rare occasions, and were not nearly enough to satisfy the people, who, in spite of the patriarchal trivializing of women, desperately desired a divine female figure to worship and venerate.

      The Visitation

      Domenico Ghirlandaio, 1491

      Oil on wood, 172 × 167 cm

      The Louvre, Paris

      The yearning for the powerful but gentle Great Mother could not be silenced, and the worship of the goddesses from the old religions, such as Isis, Cybele, Demeter, Aphrodite and Athena continued. The devotion to Isis was, perhaps, the most widespread, posing a formidable threat to the fledgling Christian cult.

      The Virgin and Child Accompanied by Two Angels, Saint Rose and Saint Catherine

      Perugino, c.1492

      Oil on wood, diameter: 148 cm

      The Louvre, Paris

      The new Christian religion needed its own Great Mother, and that Mother manifested herself first in the early interpretations of the Holy Ghost as female, and of Sophia as the Wisdom of God. These powerful female archetypes of the new predominantly patriarchal religion were soon overshadowed by the inclusion of Mary, the mother of Christ.

      Presentation of the Virgin at the Temple

      Nicolas Dipre, c.1500

      Painting on wood, 33 × 51 cm

      The Louvre, Paris

      From the beginning, the Madonna was seen as the symbol for the Mother Church herself. The presence of the Madonna was critical to the universal acceptance of Christianity in Europe, both eastern and western; her presence created a bridge that allowed the followers of the matriarchal goddess-worshipping religions to join the new patriarchal cult.

      The Visitation

      Mariotto Albertinelli, 1503

      Oil on wood, 232 × 146, cm

      Uffizi, Florence

      A complex Marian dogma was gradually developed by the clergy, always in response to the public’s needs and desires to worship and venerate this divinity.

      However, the Christian dogma of the early centuries included another powerful female figure, the mysterious Sophia, or the Word of God, as the female element within the Creation.

      The Holy Family with the Young Saint John the Baptist (Doni Tondo)