Georges de latour newly born infant
The Newborn Child » by Georges de La Tour - blog.gingko-editions...
For the feast-day of St. Anne, the blessed Virgin’s mother, we will be looking at the painting “The Newborn Child” (ca.
Georges de latour newly born infant
1648) by Georges de La Tour (1593-1652), hanging in the “Musée des Beaux-arts” in Rennes which is worth a detour.
At first sight, this painting seems to represent a simple, domestic genre scene, as one liked them at the time from the paintings of Louis Le Nain.
But a closer look shows us that it is a nativity scene, itself in the tradition of the trinitarian images of St. Anne, the grandmother of Jesus.
A Trinitarian Sainte Anne or a Marian Trinity
Though saint Anne is not mentioned in the Gospels, her name as the spouse of Joachim appears in the apocryphal writings from the 2nd century onwards.
However, the devotion to St. Anne was only officially introduced in 1481 by pope Sixtus IV, the pope who also spoke in favor of the Immaculate Conception. Yet it became widespread during the Middle Ages, and after some decline, regained popularity in the 17th centur