Sevillian school: XVI century.

Sevillian school: XVI century.
"Mary Magdalene".
Oil on panel.
It has a 20th century frame.
Measurements: 56,5 x 27 cm; 67,5 x 37,5 cm.

In this oil painting on panel the author represents Mary Magdalene on the outside holding the cross with the figure of Christ and in the other hand the pommel of perfumes which is her main iconographic attribute. The character is richly adorned, presenting jewels in her hands, neck and on her head. The representation of Mary Magdalene, especially as a penitent in the desert was a widely repeated iconographic theme. Because the story of this Serbian saint exemplifies the forgiveness of Christ, and conveys the message of the possibility of redemption of the soul through repentance and faith.

Mary Magdalene is mentioned in the New Testament as a distinguished disciple of Christ. According to the Gospels, she housed and materially provided for Jesus and his disciples during their stay in Galilee, and was present at the Crucifixion. She was a witness of the Resurrection, as well as the one in charge of transmitting the news to the apostles. She is also identified with the woman who anointed Jesus' feet with perfumes before his arrival in Jerusalem, so her main iconographic attribute is a knob of essences, like the one shown here. Alone, Mary Magdalene is usually depicted as we see here, doing penance in the desert, repentant for her past sins. Covered in rags and with a skull, alluding to her sufferings as a penitent, meditating on the Holy Scriptures. The story of this saint serves as an example of Christ's forgiveness, and conveys the message of the possibility of redemption of the soul through repentance and faith.
While Eastern Christianity especially honors Mary Magdalene for her closeness to Jesus, considering her "equal to the apostles," in the West the idea developed, based on her identification with other women in the Gospels, that before meeting Jesus she had engaged in prostitution. Hence the later legend narrates that she spent the rest of her life as a penitent in the desert, mortifying her flesh. In art she was preferably represented in this way, especially in the 17th century, a time when Catholic societies felt a special fascination for the lives of mystics and saints who lived in solitude in wild places, dedicated to prayer and penance. The theme of the Magdalene, moreover, offered the possibility of representing a beautiful woman who shows some parts of the anatomy then considered taboo, such as the feet or the breast, but who in her respects decorum in that she is mortified flesh expressing repentance for her past sins.