scene, the Virgin Mother is always introduced, though here as a less
conspicuous figure, and one less important to the action. Either
she swoons, which is the ancient Greek conception; or she follows,
with streaming eyes and clasped hands, the pious disciples who bear
the dead form of her Son, as in Raphael's wonderful picture in the
Borghese Palace, and Titian's, hardly less beautiful, in the Louvre,
where the compassionate Magdalene sustains her veiled and weeping
figure;--or she stands by, looking on disconsolate, while the beloved
Son is laid in the tomb.

*       *       *       *       *

All these fine and important themes belong properly to a series of
the History of Christ. In a series of the Life of the Virgin, the
incidents of the Passion of our Lord are generally omitted; whereas,
in the cycle of subjects styled the ROSARY, the Bearing of the Cross,
the Crucifixion, and the Deposition, are included in the fourth and
fifth of the "Sorrowful Mysteries." I shall have much more to say on
these subjects when treating of the artistic representations from
the History of Christ. I will only add here, that their frequency as
_separate_ subjects, and the preeminence given to the figure of the
Virgin as the mother of Pity, are very suggestive and affecting when
we come to consider their _intention_ as well as their significance.
For, in the first place, they were in most instances the votive
offerings of those who had lost the being most dear to them, and
thus appealed so the divine compassion of her who had felt that sword
"pierce through her own heart also." In this sense they were often
suspended as memorials in the chapels dedicated to the dead, of which
I will cite one very beautiful and touching example. There is a votive
Deposition by Giottino, in which the general conception is that which
belonged to the school, and very like Giotto's Deposition in the Arena
at Padua. The dead Christ is extended on a white shroud, and embraced
by the Virgin; at his feet kneels the Magdalene, with clasped hands
and flowing hair; Mary Salome kisses one of his hands, and Martha
(as I suppose) the other; the third Mary, with long hair, and
head dropping with grief, is seated in front to the right. In the
background, in the centre, stands St. John, bending over the group in
profound sorrow; on his left hand Joseph of Arimathea stands with the
vase of "spices and ointments," and the nails; near him Nicodemus.
On the right of St. John kneels a beautiful young girl, in the rich
Florentine costume, who, with a sorrowful earnestness and with her
hands crossed over her bosom, contemplates the dead Saviour. St.
Romeo (or San Remigio) patron of the church in which the picture was
dedicated, lays his hand paternally on her head; beside her kneels a
Benedictine nun, who in the game manner is presented by St. Benedict.
These two females, sisters perhaps, are the bereaved mourners who
dedicated the picture, certainly one of the finest of the Giottesque
school.[1]

[Footnote 1: It is now in the gallery of the Uffizii, at Florence. In
the Florentine edition of Vasari the name of the church in which this
picture was originally placed is called San _Romeo_, who is St. Remi
(or Remigio), Bishop of Reims. The painter, Giottino, the greatest and
the most interesting, personally, of the Giottesque artists, was, as
Vasari says, "of a melancholy temperament, and a lover of solitude;"
"more desirous of glory than of gain;" "contented with little, and
thinking more of serving and gratifying others than of himself;"
"taking small care for himself, and perpetually engrossed by the works
he had undertaken." He died of consumption, in 1356, at the age of
thirty two.]

Secondly, we find that the associations left in the minds of the
people by the expeditions of the Crusaders and the pilgrimages to
the Holy Sepulchre, rendered the Deposition and the Entombment
particularly popular and impressive as subjects of art, even down to
a late period. "Ce que la vaillante epee des ayeux avait glorieusement
defendu, le ciscaux des enfans aimait a le reproduire, leur piete a
l'honorer." I think we may trace these associations in many examples,
particularly in a Deposition by Raphael, of which there is a fine old
engraving. Here, in the centre, stands a circular building, such as
the church at Jerusalem was always described; in front of which are
seen the fainting Virgin and the mournful women: a grand and solemn
group, but poetically rather than historically treated.

*       *       *       *       *

In conclusion, I must notice one more form of the Mater Dolorosa, one
of the dramatic conceptions of the later schools of art; as far as I
knew, there exist no early examples.

In a picture by Guercino (Louvre), the Virgin and St. Peter lament the
death of the Saviour. The Mother, with her clasped hands resting on
her knees, appears lost in resigned sorrow: she mourns her Son. Peter,
weeping, as with a troubled grief, seems to mourn at once his Lord
and Master, and his own weak denial. This picture has the energetic
feeling and utter want of poetic elevation which generally
characterized Guercino.

There is a similar group by Ludovico Caracci in the Duonio at Bologna.

In a picture by Tiarini, the _Madre Addolorata_ is seated, holding
in her hand the crown of thorns; Mary Magdalene kneels before her,
and St. John stands by--both expressing the utmost veneration and
sympathy. These and similar groups are especially to be found in the
later Bologna school. In all the instances known to me, they have been
painted for the Dominicans, and evidently intended to illustrate the
sorrows of the Rosary.

In one of the services of the Passion Week, and in particular
reference to the maternal anguish of the Virgin, it was usual to read,
as the Epistle, a selection from the first chapter of the Lamentations
of Jeremiah, eloquent in the language of desolation and grief. The
painters seemed to have filled their imagination with the images
there presented; and frequently in the ideal _Pieta_ the daughter
of Jerusalem "sits solitary, with none to comfort her." It is the
contrary in the dramatic version: the devotion of the women, the
solicitude of the affectionate Magdalene, and the filial reverence of
St. John, whom the scriptural history associates with the Virgin in a
manner so affecting, are never forgotten.

In obedience to the last command of his dying Master, John the
Evangelist--

"He, into whose keeping, from the cross,
The mighty charge was given--"

DANTE.

conducted to his own dwelling the Mother to whom he was henceforth to
be as a Son. This beautiful subject, "John conducting the Virgin to
his home," was quite unknown, as far as I am aware, in the earlier
schools of art, and appears first in the seventeenth century. An
eminent instance is a fine solemn group by Zurbaran. (Munich.) Christ
was laid in the sepulchre by night, and here, in the gray dawn, John
and the veiled Virgin are seen as returning from the entombment, and
walking mournfully side by side.

*       *       *       *       *

We find the peculiar relation between the Mother of Christ and St.
John, as her adopted son, expressed in a very tender and ideal manner,
on one of the wings of an altar-piece, attributed to Taddeo Gaddi.
(Berlin Gal., No. 1081.) Mary and St. John stand in front; he holds
one of her hands clasped in both his own, with a most reverent and
affectionate expression. Christ, standing between them, lays one hand
on the shoulder of each; the sentiment of this group is altogether
very unusual; and very remarkable.




HISTORICAL SUBJECTS




PART IV.




THE LIFE OF THE VIRGIN MARY FROM THE RESURRECTION OF OUR LORD TO THE
ASSUMPTION.

1. THE APPARITION OF CHRIST TO HIS MOTHER. 2. THE ASCENSION. 3.
THE DESCENT OF THE HOLY GHOST. 4. THE DEATH OF THE VIRGIN. 5. THE
ASSUMPTION AND CORONATION.


THE APPARITION OF CHRIST TO HIS MOTHER.

The enthusiastic and increasing veneration for the Madonna, the large
place she filled in the religious teaching of the ecclesiastics and
the religious sentiments of the people, are nowhere more apparent,
nor more strikingly exhibited, than in the manner in which she was
associated with the scenes which followed the Passion;--the manner
in which some incidents were suggested, and treated with a peculiar
reference to her, and to her maternal feelings. It is nowhere said
that the Virgin Mother was one of the Marys who visited the tomb on
the morning of the resurrection, and nowhere is she so represented.
But out of the human sympathy with that bereaved and longing heart,
arose the beautiful legend of the interview between Christ and his
Mother after he had risen from the dead.

There existed a very ancient tradition (it is mentioned by St.
Ambrose in the fourth century, as being then generally accepted by
Christians), that Christ, after his return from Hades, visited his
Mother even before he appeared to Mary Magdalene in the garden.
It is not indeed so written in the Gospel; but what of that? The
reasoning which led to the conclusion was very simple. He whose last
earthly thought was for his Mother would not leave her without that
consolation it was in his power to give; and what, as a son, it was
his duty to do (for the _humanity_ of Christ is never forgotten by
those who most intensely believed in his _divinity_,) that, of course,
he did do.

The story is thus related:--Mary, when all was "finished," retired
to her chamber, and remained alone with her grief--not wailing, not
repining, not hopeless, but waiting for the fulfilment of the promise.
Open before her lay the volume of the prophecies; and she prayed
earnestly, and she said, "Thou, didst promise, O my most dear Son!
that thou wouldst rise again on the third day. Before yesterday was
the day of darkness and bitterness, and, behold, this is the third
day. Return then to me thy Mother; O my Son, tarry not, but come!"
And while thus she prayed, lo! a bright company of angels, who entered
waving their palms and radiant with joy; and they surrounded her,
kneeling and singing the triumphant Easter hymn, _Regina Coeli laetare,
Alleluia!_[1] And then came Christ partly clothed in a white garment,
having in his left hand the standard of the cross, as one just
returned from the nether world, and victorious over the powers of
sin and death. And with him came the patriarchs and prophets, whose
long-imprisoned spirits he had released from Hades.[2] All these knelt
before the Virgin, and saluted her, and blessed her, and thanked her,
because through her had come their deliverance. But, for all this, the
Mother was not comforted till she had heard the voice of her Son. Then
he, raising his hand in benediction, spoke and said, "I salute thee,
O my Mother!" and she, weeping tears of joy, responded, "Is it thou
indeed, my most dear Son?" and she fell upon his neck, and he embraced
her tenderly, and showed her the wounds he had received for sinful
man. Then he bid her be comforted and weep no more, for the pain
of death had passed away, and the gates of hell had not prevailed
against him. And she thanked him meekly on her knees, for that he had
been pleased to bring redemption to man, and to make her the humble
instrument of his great mercy. And they sat and talked together, until
he took leave of her to return to the garden, and to show himself to
Mary Magdalene, who, next to his glorious Mother, had most need of
consolation.[3]

[Footnote 1:

"Regina Coeli laetare Alleluia!
Quia quem meruisti portare, Alleluia!
Resurrexit sicut dixit, Alleluia!
Ora pro nobis Deum, Alleluia!"]

[Footnote 2: The legend of the "Descent into Hades" (or limbo), often
treated of in art, will be given at length in the History of our
Lord.]

[Footnote 3: I have given the legend from various sources; but there
is something quite untranslatable and perfectly beautiful in the
naivete of the old Italian version. After describing the celestial
music of the angels, the rejoicing of the liberated patriarchs, and
the appearance of Christ, _allegro, e bello e tutto lucido_, it thus
proceeds: "_Quando ella lo vidde, gli ando incontro ella ancora con
le braccia aperte, e quasi tramortita per l'allegrazza. Il benedetto
Gesu l'abbraccio teneressimamente, ed ella glidesse; 'Ahi, figliuolo
mio cordialissimo, sei tu veramente il mio Gesu, o pur m'inganna
l'affetto!' 'Io sono il tuo figliuolo, madre mia, dolcissima,' disse
il Signore: 'cessino hormai le tue lagrime, non fare ch'io ti veda
piu di mala voglia, Gia son finiti li tuoi e li miei travagli e dolori
insieme!' Erano rimase alcune lagrime negli occhi della Vergine....
e per la grande allegrezza non poteva proferire parola alcuna ...
ma quando al fine pote parlare, lo ringrazio per parte di tutto
il genere humano, per la redenzione, operata e fatta, per tutto
generalmente."--v. Il Perfetto Legendario_]

The pathetic sentiment, and all the supernatural and mystical
accompaniments of this beautiful myth of the early ages, have been
very inadequately rendered by the artists. It is always treated as a
plain matter-of-fact scene. The Virgin kneels; the Saviour, bearing
his standard, stands before her; and where the delivered patriarchs
are introduced, they are generally either Adam and Eve, the authors
of the fall or Abraham and David, the progenitors of Christ and the
Virgin. The patriarchs are omitted in the earliest instance I can
refer to, one of the carved panels of the stalls in the Cathedral of
Amiens: also in the composition by Albert Durer, not included in his
life of the Virgin, but forming one of the series of the Passion.
Guido has represented the scene in a very fine picture, wherein an
angel bears the standard of victory, and behind our Saviour are Adam
and Eve. (Dresden Gal.)

Another example, by Guercino (Cathedral, Cento), is cited by Goethe
as an instance of that excellence in the expression of the natural
and domestic affections which characterized the painter. Mary kneels
before her Son, looking up in his face with unutterable affection;
he regards her with a calm, sad look, "as if within his noble soul
there still remained the recollection of his sufferings and hers,
outliving the pang of death, the descent into the grave, and which
the resurrection had not yet dispelled." This, however, is not the
sentiment, at once affectionate and joyously triumphant, of the
old legend. I was pleased with a little picture in the Lichtenstein
Gallery at Vienna, where the risen Saviour, standing before his
Mother, points to the page of the book before her, as if he said, "See
you not that thus it is written?" (Luke xxiv. 46.) Behind Jesus is
St. John the Evangelist bearing the cup and the cross, as the cup of
sorrow and the cross of pain, not the mere emblems. There is another
example, by one of the Caracci, in the Fitzwilliam Collection at
Cambridge.

A picture by Albano of this subject, in which Christ comes flying or
floating on the air, like an incorporeal being, surrounded by little
fluttering cherubim, very much like Cupids, is an example of all that
is most false and objectionable in feeling and treatment. (Florence,
Pitti Pal.)

The popularity of this scene in the Bologna school of art arose, I
think, from its being adopted as one of the subjects from the Rosary,
the first of "the five Glorious Mysteries;" therefore especially
affected by the Dominicans, the great patrons of the Caracci at that
time.

*       *       *       *       *

The ASCENSION, though one of the "Glorious Mysteries," was also
accounted as the seventh and last of the sorrows of the Virgin, for
she was then left alone on earth. All the old legends represent her
as present on this occasion, and saying, as she followed with uplifted
eyes the soaring figure of Christ, "My Son, remember me when thou
comest to thy kingdom! Leave me not long after thee, my Son!" In
Giotto's composition in the chapel of the Arena, at Padua, she is by
far the most prominent figure. In almost all the late pictures of the
Ascension, she is introduced with the other Marys, kneeling on one
side, or placed in the centre among the apostles.

*       *       *       *       *

The DESCENT OF THE HOLY GHOST is a strictly scriptural subject. I
have heard it said that the introduction of Mary is not authorized by
the scripture narrative. I must observe, however that, without any
wringing of the text for an especial purpose, the passage might be
so interpreted. In the first chapter of the Acts (ver. 14), after
enumerating the apostles by name, it is added, "These all continued
with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women and Mary
the mother of Jesus, and with his brethren." And in the commencement
of the second chapter the narrative thus proceeds: "And when the day
of Pentecost was fully come, they were _all_ with one accord in
one place." The word _all_ is, in the Concordance, referred to the
previous text (ver. 14), as including Mary and the women: thus they
who were constant in their love were not refused a participation in
the gifts of the Spirit. Mary, in her character of the divine Mother
of Wisdom, or even Wisdom herself,[1] did not, perhaps, need any
accession of intellectual light; but we must remember that the Holy
Spirit was the Comforter, as well as the Giver of wisdom; therefore,
equally needed by those, whether men or women, who were all equally
called upon to carry out the ministry of Christ in love and service,
in doing and in suffering.

[Footnote 1: The sublime eulogium of Wisdom (Prov. viii. 22), is, in
the Roman Catholic Church, applied to the Virgin Mary.]

In the account of the apostles I have already described at length the
various treatment and most celebrated examples of this subject, and
shall only make one or two observations with especial reference to
the figure of the Virgin. It was in accordance with the feelings and
convictions prevalent in the fifteenth century, that if Mary were
admitted to be present, she would take the principal place, as Queen
and Mother of the Apostles (_Regina et Mater Apostolorum_). She
is, therefore, usually placed either in front, or in the centre
on a raised seat or dais; and often holding a book (as the _Mater
Sapientiae_); and she receives the divine affusion either with veiled
lids and meek rejoicing; or with uplifted eyes, as one inspired, she
pours forth the hymn, _Veni, Sancte Spiritus_.

I agree with the critics that, as the Spirit descended in form
of cloven tongues of fire, the emblem of the Dove, almost always
introduced, is here superfluous, and, indeed, out of place.

*       *       *       *       *

I must mention here another subject altogether apocryphal, and
confined to the late Spanish and Italian schools: The Virgin receives
the sacramental wafer from the hand of St. John the Evangelist.
This is frequently misunderstood, and styled the Communion of Mary
Magdalene. But the long hair and uncovered head of the Magdalene, and
the episcopal robe of St. Maximin, are in general distinguishable from
the veiled matronly head of the Virgin Mother, and the deacon's vest
of St. John. There is also a legend that Mary received baptism from
St. Peter; but this is a subject I have never met with in art, ancient
or modern. It may possibly exist.

I am not acquainted with any representations taken from the sojourn on
earth of the Blessed Virgin from this time to the period of her death,
the date of which is uncertain. It is, however, generally supposed to
have taken place in the forty-eighth year of our era, and about eleven
years after the Crucifixion, therefore in her sixtieth year. There
is no distinct record, either historical or legendary, as to the
manner in which she passed these years. There are, indeed, floating
traditions alluded to by the early theological writers, that when the
first persecution broke out at Jerusalem, Mary accompanied St. John
the Evangelist to Ephesus, and was attended thither by the faithful
and affectionate Mary Magdalene. Also that she dwelt for some time on
Mount Carmel, in an oratory erected there by the prophet Elijah, and
hence became the patroness of the Carmelites, under the title of Our
Lady of Mount Carmel (_La Madonna del Carmine_, or _del Carmelo_).
If there exist any creations of the artists founded on these obscure
traditions, which is indeed most probable, particularly in the
edifices of the Carmelites in Spain, I have not met with them.

*       *       *       *       *

It is related that before the apostles separated to obey the command
of their divine Master, and preach the gospel to all the nations of
the earth, they took a solemn leave of the Virgin Mary, and received
her blessing. This subject has been represented, though not by any
distinguished artist. I remember such a picture, apparently of the
sixteenth century, in the Church of S. Maria-in-Capitolio at Cologne,
and another, by Bissoni, in the San Giustina at Padua. (Sacred and
Legendary Art.)





THE DEATH AND ASSUMPTION Of THE VIRGIN


_Lat._ Dormitio, Pausatio, Transitus, Assumptio, B. Virginis. _Ital._
Il Transito di Maria. Il Sonno della Beata Vergine. L' Assunzione.
_Fr._ La Mort de la Vierge. L'Assomption. _Ger._ Das Absterben der
Maria. Maria Himmelfahrt. August, 13, 15.


We approach the closing scenes.

Of all the representations consecrated to the glory of the Virgin,
none have been more popular, more multiplied through every form of
art, and more admirably treated, than her death and apotheosis.
The latter in particular, under the title of "the Assumption,"
became the visible expression of a dogma of faith then universally
received--namely, the exaltation and deification of the Virgin in
the body as well as in the spirit. As such it meets us at every turn
in the edifices dedicated to her; in painting over the altar, in
sculpture over the portal, or gleaming upon us in light from the
shining many-coloured windows. Sometimes the two subjects are
combined, and the death-scene (_Il transito di Maria_) figured below,
is, in fact, only the _transition_ to the blessedness and exaltation
figured above. But whether separate or combined, the two scenes, in
themselves most beautiful and touching,--the extremes of the mournful
and the majestic, the dramatic and the ideal,--offered to the medieval
artists such a breadth of space for the exhibition of feeling and
fancy as no other subject afforded. Consequently, among the examples
handed down to us, are to be found some of the most curious and
important relics of the early schools, while others rank among the
grandest productions of the best ages of art.

For the proper understanding of these, it is necessary to give the old
apocryphal legend at some length; for, although the very curious and
extravagant details of this legend were not authorized by the Church
as matters of fact or faith, it is clear that the artists were
permitted thence to derive their materials and their imagery. In
what manner they availed themselves of this permission, and how far
the wildly poetical circumstances with which the old tradition was
gradually invested, were allowed to enter into the forms of art, we
shall afterwards consider.


THE LEGEND OF THE DEATH AND ASSUMPTION OF THE MOST GLORIOUS
VIRGIN MARY.

Mary dwelt in the house of John upon Mount Sion looking for
the fulfilment of the promise of deliverance, and she spent
her days in visiting those places which had been hallowed by
the baptism, the sufferings, the burial and resurrection of
her divine Son, but more particularly the tomb wherein he was
laid. And she did not this as seeking the living among the
dead, but for consolation and for remembrance.

And on a certain day; the heart of the Virgin, being filled
with an inexpressible longing to behold her Son, melted away
within her, and she wept abundantly. And lo! an angel appeared
before her clothed in light as with a garment. And he saluted
her, and said, "Hail, O Mary! blessed by him who hath given
salvation to Israel I bring thee here a branch of palm
gathered in Paradise; command that it be carried before thy
bier in the day of thy death; for in three days they soul
shall leave thy body, and though shalt enter into Paradise,
where thy Son awaits thy coming." Mary, answering, said, "If I
have found grace in thy eyes, tell me first what is thy name;
and grant that the apostles my brethren may be reunited to me
before I die, that in their presence I may give up my soul to
God. Also, I pray thee, that my soul, when delivered from my
body, may not be affrighted by any spirit of darkness, nor
any evil angel be allowed to have any power over me." And the
angel said, "Why dost thou ask my name? My name is the Great
and the Wonderful. And now doubt not that all the apostles
shall be reunited, to thee this day; for he who in former
times transported the prophet Habakkuk from Judea to Jerusalem
by the hair of his head, can as easily bring hither the
apostles. And fear thou not the evil spirit, for hast thou not
bruised his head and destroyed his kingdom?" And having said
these words, the angel departed into heaven; and the palm
branch which he had left behind him shed light from every
leaf, and sparkled as the stars of the morning. Then Mary
lighted, the lamps and prepared her bed, and waited until the
hour was come. And in the same instant John, who was preaching
at Ephesus, and Peter, who was preaching at Antioch, and all
the other apostles who were dispersed in different parts of
the world, were suddenly caught up as by a miraculous power,
and found themselves before the door of the habitation of
Mary. When Mary saw them all assembled round her, she blessed
and thanked the Lord, and she placed in the hands of St. John
the shining palm, and desired that he should bear it before
her at the time of her burial. Then Mary, kneeling down, made
her prayer to the Lord her Son, and the others prayed with
her; then she laid herself down in her bed and composed
herself for death. And John wept bitterly. And about the third
hour of the night, as Peter stood at the head of the bed and
John at the foot, and the other apostles around, a mighty
sound filled the house, and a delicious perfume filled
the chamber. And Jesus himself appeared accompanied by an
innumerable company of angels, patriarchs, and prophets; all
these surrounded the bed of the Virgin, singing hymns of joy.
And Jesus said to his Mother, "Arise, my beloved, mine elect!
come with me from Lebanon, my espoused! receive the crown that
is destined for thee!" And Mary, answering, said, "My heart
is ready; for it was written of me that I should do thy will!"
Then all the angels and blessed spirits who accompanied Jesus
began to sing and rejoice. And the soul of Mary left her body,
and was received into the arms of her Son; and together they
ascended into heaven.[1] And the apostles looked up, saying,
"Oh most prudent Virgin, remember us when thou comest to
glory!" and the angels, who received her into heaven, sung
these words, "Who is this that cometh up from the wilderness
leaning upon her Beloved? she is fairer than all the daughters
of Jerusalem."

[Footnote 1: In the later French legend, it is the angel
Michael who takes charge of the departing soul. "_Ecce Dominus
venit cum multitudine angelorum_; et Jesus Christ vint en grande
compaignie d'anges; entre lesquels estoit Sainct Michel, et quand
la Vierge Marie le veit elle dit, 'Benoist soit Jesus Christ car il
ne m'a pas oubliee.' Quand elle eut ce dit elle rendit l'esprit,
lequel Sainct Michel print."]

But the body of Mary remained upon the earth; and three among
the virgins prepared to wash and clothe it in a shroud; but
such a glory of light surrounded her form, that though they
touched it they could not see it, and no human eye beheld
those chaste and sacred limbs unclothed. Then the apostles
took her up reverently and placed her upon a bier, and John,
carrying the celestial palm, went before. Peter sung the 114th
Psalm, "_In exitu Israel de Egypto, domus Jacob de populo
barbaro_," and the angels followed after, also singing. The
wicked Jews, hearing these melodious voices, ran together; and
the high-priest, being seized with fury, laid his hands upon
the bier intending to overturn it on the earth; but both his
arms were suddenly dried up, so that he could not move them,
and he was overcome with fear; and he prayed to St. Peter
for help, and Peter said, "Have faith in Jesus Christ, and
his Mother, and thon shalt be healed;" and it was so. Then
they went on and laid the Virgin in a tomb in the Valley of
Jehoshaphat.[1]

[Footnote 1: Or Gethsemane. I must observe here, that in the
genuine oriental legend, it is Michael the Archangel who hews off
the hands of the audacious Jew, which were afterwards, at the
intercession of St. Peter, reunited to his body.]

And on the third day, Jesus said to the angels, "What honour
shall I confer on her who was my mother on earth, and brought
me forth?" And they answered, "Lord, suffer not that body
which was thy temple and thy dwelling to see corruption; but
place her beside thee on thy throne in heaven." And Jesus
consented; and the Archangel Michael brought unto the Lord,
the glorious soul of our Lady. And the Lord said, "Rise up, my
dove, my undefiled, for thou shalt not remain in the darkness
of the grave, nor shall thou see corruption;" and immediately
the soul of Mary rejoined her body, and she arose up glorious
from the tomb, and ascended into heaven surrounded and
welcomed by troops of angels, blowing their silver trumpets,
touching their golden lutes, singing, and rejoicing as they
sung, "Who is she that riseth as the morning, fair as the
moon, clear as the sun, and terrible as an army with banners?"
(Cant. vi. 10.)

But one among the apostles was absent; and when he arrived
soon after, he would not believe in the resurrection of the
Virgin; and this apostle was the same Thomas, who had formerly
been slow to believe in the resurrection of the Lord; and he
desired that the tomb should be opened before him; and when it
was opened it was found to be full of lilies and roses. Then
Thomas, looking up to heaven, beheld the Virgin bodily, in a
glory of light, slowly mounting towards the heaven; and she,
for the assurance of his faith, flung down to him her girdle,
the same which is to this day preserved in the cathedral of
Prato. And there were present at the death of the Virgin
Mary, besides the twelve apostles, Dionysius the Areopagite,
Timotheus, and Hierotheus; and of the women, Mary Salome, Mary
Cleophas,[1] and a faithful handmaid whose name was Savia.

[Footnote 1: According to the French legend, Mary Magdalene and her
sister Martha were also present.]

*       *       *       *       *

This legend of the Death and Assumption of the Virgin has afforded to
the artists seven distinct scenes.

1. The Angel, bearing the palm, announces to Mary her approaching
death. The announcing angel is usually supposed to be Gabriel, but
it is properly Michael, the "angel of death." 2. She takes leave of
the Apostles. 3. Her Death. 4. She is borne to the Sepulchre. 5.
Her Entombment. 6. Her Assumption, where she rises triumphant and
glorious, "like unto the morning" ("_quasi aurora consurgens_"). 7.
Her Coronation in heaven, where she takes her place beside her Son.

In early art, particularly in the Gothic sculpture, two or more of
these subjects are generally grouped together. Sometimes we have the
death-scene and the entombment on a line below, and, above these,
the coronation or the assumption, as over the portal of Notre Dame at
Paris, and in many other instances; or we have first her death, above
this, her assumption, and, above all, her coronation; as over the
portal at Amiens and elsewhere.

*       *       *       *       *

I shall now take these subjects in their order.

The angel announcing to Mary her approaching death has been rarely
treated. In general, Mary is seated or standing, and the angel kneels
before her, bearing the starry palm brought from Paradise. In the
frescoes at Orvieto, and in the bas-relief of Oreagna,[1] the angel
comes flying downwards with the palm. In a predella by Fra Filippo
Lippi, the angel kneels, reverently presenting a taper, which the
Virgin receives with majestic grace; St. Peter stands behind. It was
the custom to place a taper in the hand of a dying person; and as the
palm is also given sometimes to the angel of the incarnation, while
the taper can have but one meaning, the significance of the scene
is here fixed beyond the possibility of mistake, though there is a
departure from the literal details of the old legend. There is in
the Munich Gallery a curious German example of this subject by Hans
Schauffelein.

[Footnote 1: On the beautiful shrine in Or-San-Michele, at Florence.]

*       *       *       *       *

The death of the Virgin is styled in Byzantine and old Italian art
the Sleep of the Virgin, _Il Sonno della Madonna_; for it was an
old superstition, subsequently rejected as heretical, that she did
not really die after the manner of common mortals, only fell asleep
till her resurrection. Therefore, perhaps, it is, that in the early
pictures we have before us, not so much a scene or action, as a sort
of mysterious rite; it is not the Virgin dead or dying in her bed; she
only slumbers in preparation for her entombment; while in the later
pictures, we have a death-bed scene with all the usual dramatic and
pathetic accessories.

In one sense or the other, the theme has been constantly treated,
from the earliest ages of the revival of art down to the seventeenth
century.

In the most ancient examples which are derived from the Greek school,
it is always represented with a mystical and solemn simplicity,
adhering closely to the old legend, and to the formula laid down in
the Greek Manual.

There is such a picture in the Wallerstein Collection at Kensington
Palace. The couch or bier is in the centre of the picture, and Mary
lies upon it wrapped in a veil and mantle with closed eyes and hands
crossed over her bosom. The twelve apostles stand round in attitudes
of grief angels attend bearing tapers. Behind the extended form of the
Virgin is the figure of Christ; a glorious red seraph with expanded
wings hovers above his head. He holds in his arms the soul of the
Virgin in likeness of a new-born child. On each side stand St.
Dionysius the Areopagite, and St. Timothy, Bishop of Ephesas, in
episcopal robes. In front, the archangel Michael bends forward to
strike off the hands of the high-priest Adonijah, who had attempted to
profane the bier. (This last circumstance is rarely expressed, except
in the Byzantine pictures; for in the Italian legend, the hands of the
intruder wither and adhere to the bed or shrine.) In the picture
just described; all is at once simple, and formal, and solemn, and
supernatural; it is a very perfect example in its way of the genuine
Byzantine treatment. There is a similar picture in the Christian
museum of the Vatican.

Another (the date about the first half of the fourteenth century,
as I think) is curious from the introduction of the women.[1] The
Virgin lies on an embroidered sheet held reverently by angels; at the
feet and at the head other angels bear tapers; Christ receives the
departing soul, which stretches out its arms; St. John kneels in
front, and St. Peter reads the service; the other apostles are behind
him, and there are three women. The execution of this curious picture
is extremely rude, but the heads very fine. Cimabue painted the Death
of the Virgin at Assisi. There is a beautiful example by Giotto, where
two lovely angels stand at the head and two at the feet, sustaining
the pall on which she lies; another most exquisite by Angelico in
the Florence Gallery; another most beautiful and pathetic by Taddeo
Bartoli in the Palazzo Publico at Siena.

[Footnote 1: At present in the collection of Mr. Bromley, of Wootten.]

The custom of representing Christ as standing by the couch or tomb of
his mother, in the act of receiving her soul, continued down to the
fifteenth century, at least with slight deviations from the original
conception. The later treatment is quite different. The solemn
mysterious sleep, the transition from one life to another, became a
familiar death-bed scene with the usual moving accompaniments. But
even while avoiding the supernatural incidents, the Italians gave to
the representation much ideal elegance; for instance, in the beautiful
fresco by Ghirlandajo. (Florence, S. Maria-Novella.)

*       *       *       *       *

In the old German school we have that homely matter-of-fact feeling,
and dramatic expression, and defiance of all chronological propriety,
which belonged to the time and school. The composition by Albert
Durer, in his series of the Life of the Virgin, has great beauty and
simplicity of expression, and in the arrangement a degree of grandeur
and repose which has caused it to be often copied and reproduced as a
picture, though the original form is merely that of a wood-cut.[1] In
the centre is a bedstead with a canopy, on which Mary lies fronting
the spectator, her eyes half closed. On the left of the bed stands
St. Peter, habited as a bishop: he places a taper in her dying hand;
another apostle holds the asperge with which to sprinkle her with
holy water: another reads the service. In the foreground is a priest
bearing a cross, and another with incense; and on the right, the other
apostles in attitudes of devotion and grief.

[Footnote 1: There is one such copy in the Sutherland Gallery; and
another in the Munich Gallery, Cabinet viii. 161.]

Another picture by Albert Durer, once in the Fries Gallery, at
Vienna, unites, in a most remarkable manner, all the legendary and