Madonna and Child and the Young St John the Baptist
1505 Galleria Palatina
About this artwork
The painting depicts the Virgin Mary, with a sorrowful expression, cradling the infant Jesus. The young St. John the Baptist embraces Jesus, holding a slender cross-staff, against a backdrop of climbing roses and a light blue sky.
Did you know?
This painting dates from Botticelli's later period, following the influence of the Dominican friar Girolamo Savonarola. His later works, like this one, often convey a more profound emotional intensity and somber atmosphere, a departure from the lyrical and decorative qualities seen in his earlier mythological masterpieces. The tender embrace between the children, coupled with Mary's melancholic gaze, subtly hints at the future sorrows to come.
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Madonna and Child and the Young St John the Baptist
Sandro Botticelli, 1505
