Sandro Botticelli, Madonna del Libro

Description

Of all the depictions of the Madonna and Child, this one by Botticelli is undoubtedly one of the most important: the protagonists are the Virgin Mary and her son Jesus. The Child is held on his mother's legs, while he turns his gaze towards Mary and the latter, with a melancholy expression, reciprocates him. In the background there is a small window that allows a glimpse of a natural landscape with a few trees, but there are not enough details to recognize in that space a representation of a real place. As you can guess from the title of the work, Maria is leafing through and reading a book, which is on the left of the composition; some of the passages reported in this text can be traced back to the Book of Isaiah, but the details of the layout, the fonts used and the form of the text itself are reminiscent of the Book of Hours, a text for daily prayer. Among the other elements in the painting, the wooden box for sweets is noteworthy, but also the container with fruit in the background: the cherry alludes to the blood of the Passion of Christ, the plums are to be traced back to the bond between Mary and Jesus and the figs recall the Resurrection. Baby Jesus, holds in one hand the nails and a simplified crown of thorns, which symbolize his tragic future.