Madonna delle Grazie

Abstract

Located in the Diocesan Museum of Teggiano, this under-life size sculpture represents the Madonna of the Graces. The Madonna holds the naked baby Jesus in her left arm and grasps her breast with her right hand. She is wearing a red dress with pseudo-Kufic details on the neckline, and a blue mantle ornate with gold foliage. The foliage was produced with estofado, a technique which entails scratching a paint layer to expose another layer of paint. In this case, a layer of blue paint was applied on top of a layer of gold. The surface was then scratched to create a brocade pattern on the mantle. Thin eyelashes are painted around her eyes, and the lips and cheeks bear a rosy tint, alluding to female beauty standards of the time. Mary is adorned with gold earrings, which have been recently placed on her, but are indicative of an older devotional practice. The sculpture may have been produced by a local workshop or sculptor in the Vallo of Diano in Teggiano, a rural region where many sacred spaces were dedicated to the Madonna of the Graces. The cult of the Madonna of the Graces is prominent across Campania, and Mary was and is still recognized as a symbol of fertility. Traditional Italian representations of the Madonna of the Graces often show Mary offering her breast to Christ, or Christ suckling at his mother’s breast. However, this representation of the Madonna has her breast pointed towards the viewer. The breast is exposed through a slit in the Virgin’s dress. The imagery of the Virgin Mary offering her breast to devotees is popular in Campania. The sculpture has been damaged due to burrowing insects and perhaps through natural wear and tear. Christ is also missing his hand. Photograph(s) licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.