date:
measurements: výška 111.0 cm, šírka 86.9 cm
work type: maliarstvomaľba tabuľová
object type: panel painting
genre: religious motif
material: wood
technique: oil
inscription:
institution: Slovenská národná galéria, SNG
curator: Zuzana Ludiková
inventory number: O 289
tags: madona dieťa
in collections:
licence: Creative Commons License public domain
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The scene is derived from depictions of the Holy Family when fleeing to Egypt in the version of Madonna with Child meeting baby John the Baptist. Baby Jesus receives the scroll with the Biblical quotation Ecce Agnus Dei, which is a prediction of the Crucifixion, while the Virgin Mary looks at baby John the Baptist. The scroll is John’s attribute; in Christ’s hands it has a tragic spiritual meaning. The scene takes place under a canopy defining the space; it is reminiscent of John’s message known from ancient reliefs depicting the act of sacrifice. John’s message can be read in every gesture, in every look as he delivers his prediction.

The larger part of the painting is occupied by the group of figures in a hierarchical pyramidal arrangement. The canopy separates them from the background with a hint of distant architecture. The artist’s symmetrical arrangement created a harmonious and well balanced composition. This painting is a copy of the painting Madonna della Rosa, which is considered to be the work of Raphael (1483–1520). It is the only interior depiction of the Holy Family from the later work of this master. The window sill with a rose, which later gave the name to the painting, is a later addition. In the 16th century, artists in Spain reacted to this work, which was commissioned by an unidentified patron, and today it continues to hang in Madrid (Museo Nacional del Prado).

The figure of Joseph and the window sill are left out in this copy, which is also an enlargement. The curves of the clothing and the color also differ. Baby Jesus does not stand on the window sill but on a pillow, as in the workshop replica of Raphael’s Madonna della Rosa by his student Giulio Romano (1499–1546) called Madonna Munro of Novar, today in Edinburgh (Scottish National Gallery).

The formal adaptation of the copy is proof of an independent artistic personality with preferences and limitations in technique, and the result is a work painted in more monochromatic tones and simpler shapes. It is particularly reminiscent of the work of Leonardo Grazia,4 one of Raphael’s followers, to whom other copies of Raphael are attributed.
 

Zuzana Ludiková ● LUDIKOVÁ, Zuzana - BURAN, Dušan. Talianska maľba = Italian Painting. Bratislava : Slovenská národná galéria, 2013. 242 strán. ISBN 9788080591748.