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The Virgin and Child with Saint Anne and Other Saints

Image credit: The National Gallery, London

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This altarpiece was commissioned by Benedetto Buonvisi for his family chapel in Lucca. The Virgin Mary and Saint Anne are seated on a throne. The infant Christ leans across his mother’s lap towards his grandmother to reach for the fruit she offers him.

The Virgin appears lost in thought, perhaps contemplating Christ’s destiny, which is foreshadowed by a relief carving behind her head. It represents the sacrifice of Isaac (Genesis 22: 2), when God asked Abraham to sacrifice his own son but then provided a lamb in Isaac’s place.

Saint Sebastian and Saint Paul stand on the left and Saint Lawrence and Saint Benedict are on the right. The infant Saint John the Baptist carries a banner that reads ‘ECCE AGNUS DEI’, meaning ‘Behold the Lamb of God’ – Christ must be sacrificed and no lamb will be exchanged in his place.

The National Gallery, London

London

Title

The Virgin and Child with Saint Anne and Other Saints

Date

probably about 1511-17

Medium

Oil on canvas, transferred from wood

Measurements

H 195 x W 180.5 cm

Accession number

NG179

Acquisition method

Bought, 1841

Work type

Painting

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Normally on display at

The National Gallery, London

Trafalgar Square, London, Greater London WC2N 5DN England

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