The Assumption of Mary Magdalene by Jusepe de (lo Spagnoletto) Ribera (1636)
- Tanya Torres
- May 31
- 1 min read
This beautiful painting of Mary Magdalene being carried to Heaven by putti, inspired me to draw just small sketch because I liked her expression and her hands.
According to legend, Mary Magdalene spent her last years praying, being fed by angels, who carried her to Heaven at her death. She lived in permanent communion in a cave, away from civilization and concerned only with matters of the soul.
In this Baroque artwork, she is shown in the style of the time, with little angels represented by putti, the little chubby male children with wngs that Romans portrayed in pre-Christian times to represent profane passions. In time, the putti came to represent baby angels in Christian art, and are often called cherubs. In Baroque art the putti represent the omnipresence of God.
God recognizes the devotion of Mary Magdalene and calls for her to ascend to Heaven in body and soul, carried by expressions of divinity. The angels carry the skull to remind us of the fragility of life and the certainty of death.
I wonder what the cords carried by the little angel mean. If I can find out, I will write again.
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