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Madonna and Child with Saints Elizabeth and John the Baptist

A painting in saturated, rich tones of a young woman holding a naked infant with a halo as an older woman tends to them, another small and naked child at her feet. The young woman wears robes of bright pink, while the older woman wears a vivid green top and yellow skirt.
CC0 Public Domain Designation

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  • A painting in saturated, rich tones of a young woman holding a naked infant with a halo as an older woman tends to them, another small and naked child at her feet. The young woman wears robes of bright pink, while the older woman wears a vivid green top and yellow skirt.

Date:

1535–40

Artist:

Jacopino del Conte (Italian, 1510–1598)

About this artwork

Mary holds the infant Jesus on her lap as she turns to her cousin Elizabeth, whose son, John the Baptist, kneels at her feet. John’s unlikely birth to the elderly Elizabeth prefigured the miraculous birth of Jesus, and John later preached to his divine cousin’s followers and baptized them into the faith. Here, the artist placed the biblical figures in a contemporary setting with recognizable elements of a 16th-century Florentine interior, including the portable terracotta vessel holding heated coals, called a brazier, and a fireplace made of gray sandstone (pietra serena).

One of the most successful artists working in the Mannerist style, Jacopino del Conte had a long career in Florence and Rome that bridged the early and late 16th century. His paintings carried forward the vibrant, colorful palette; elegant and monumental figures; and energetic compositions of his stylistic origins in the Florentine circle of Andrea del Sarto, Jacopo Pontormo, and Agnolo Bronzino.

Status

On View, Gallery 205

Department

Painting and Sculpture of Europe

Artist

Jacopino del Conte

Title

Madonna and Child with Saints Elizabeth and John the Baptist

Place

Italy (Artist's nationality:)

Date  Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

1535–1540

Medium

Oil on panel

Dimensions

165.5 × 126.7 × 5.8 cm (65 3/16 × 49 15/16 × 2 5/16 in.); Framed: 198.5 × 159.6 × 32.3 cm (78 1/8 × 62 13/16 × 12 3/4 in.)

Credit Line

Through prior bequest of Joseph Winterbotham; through prior gifts of Sara Lee Corporation in memory of its founder, Nathan Cummings, the Antiquarian Society, and Robert Allerton; Mr. and Mrs. Martin A. Ryerson, A. A. Munger, and Charles H. and Mary F. S. Worcester Collections; Rhoades Foundation Fund

Reference Number

2023.2986

IIIF Manifest  The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world.

Learn more.

https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/269805/manifest.json

Extended information about this artwork

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

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