Madonna and Child

Abstract

This painted wood statue in Museo Diocesano in Amalfi is likely the one documented to have been commissioned by Giacomo de Mallano for a niche in the main apse of the Cathedral of Amalfi in 1490. The only thing known about the artist is that he was presumably from Northern Europe, as the name is "Giuda Tedeschi." This statue, known as the Madonna dell'Idria, follows the Virgin Hodegetria type, a famous Byzantine icon of originally a full-length standing Virgin Mary, holding Baby Jesus in a similar pose. The reference to the Byzantine icon tradition may help explain the very frontal poses of Mary and Jesus, and the unnatural way in which May gives very little support to the baby, who seems to float in front of her. Byzantine icons are flat paintings, and so this is a Western Christian adaptation of the type. While Baby Jesus generally blesses with his right hand, it is unusual here that the Virgin Mary, rather than pointing to Christ, also raises her two fingers in a gesture of blessing. Baby Jesus is painted with a coral necklace. During the Renaissance, it was common for babies to wear coral necklaces or those with coral pendants. These items served multiple purposes: they acted as teethers, warded off evil, and were believed to possess talismanic properties. Due to its bright red colour and vein-like form, coral also symbolizes the blood of Christ. According to a 19th-century source, figures of angels once held a crown above the Madonna’s head and candelabras at the bottom of the niche. Photograph(s) licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License