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The Marriage of the Virgin

Image credit: The National Gallery, London

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The Virgin Mary, in white, places her hand in Saint Joseph’s while the dove of the Holy Ghost hovers above the altar of the Temple in Jerusalem. The high priest joins the couple in matrimony, surrounded by a crowd of onlookers. Mary’s virginal companions on the right are balanced by her disappointed suitors in exotic headgear on the left. In the front left a young woman holding a toddler looks on, though he is more interested in the small dog which has joined the ceremony. This jewel-like painting on copper, with its complex composition and glowing colours, is characteristic of Ludovico Carracci’s early works. It may well have been made for the Bolognese collector and patron Alessandro Tanari to commemorate his marriage to Diana Barbieri on 13 January 1589.

The National Gallery, London

London

Title

The Marriage of the Virgin

Date

about 1590

Medium

Oil on copper

Measurements

H 41.3 x W 32.4 cm

Accession number

NG6595

Acquisition method

Accepted by HM Government in lieu of inheritance tax and allocated to the National Gallery, 2003

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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