The Miracle of Lactation
Print
ca. 1480 (made)
ca. 1480 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
This metalcut was made using a technique called ‘dotted manner’. This type of metalcut was made in Germany or France from about 1450. It involved cutting the design into metal and then using tools to break up the areas of the plate which would otherwise print as flat black. These then appeared was white pattern against a black background. In this example, colour has also been added by hand.
This print probably had a devotional use. The subject depicts a miracle in which Saint Bernard receives divine grace in the form of breast milk from a statue of the Virgin Mary. Since the Virgin Mary’s breast milk also nurtured the infant Christ, the miracle represented the Virgin’s role as mediator between the faithful and Christ.
This print probably had a devotional use. The subject depicts a miracle in which Saint Bernard receives divine grace in the form of breast milk from a statue of the Virgin Mary. Since the Virgin Mary’s breast milk also nurtured the infant Christ, the miracle represented the Virgin’s role as mediator between the faithful and Christ.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Title | The Miracle of Lactation (generic title) |
| Materials and techniques | Metalcut, coloured by hand, mended with fragments drawn in pen and ink and pigments |
| Brief description | Metalcut coloured by hand, The Miracle of Lactation, St Bernard of Clairvaux kneeling before the Virgin and Child, ca. 1480 |
| Physical description | St Bernard of Clairvaux kneeling before the Virgin and Child. The Virgin Mary is seated on a throne with fleur-de-lys patterns, behind which is an angel standing in front of a wall patterned with stars. A speech scroll containing gothic style text floats above Bernard's mouth. In the background is a landscape with trees and a church; the sky and hills are black with white spots. The left-hand side of this impression is missing and has been filled in with pen and ink and pigments. In the foreground the floor is patterned with triangles. Hand-colouring has been applied in yellow, green and rose. |
| Dimensions |
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| Style | |
| Marks and inscriptions |
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| Subjects depicted | |
| Summary | This metalcut was made using a technique called ‘dotted manner’. This type of metalcut was made in Germany or France from about 1450. It involved cutting the design into metal and then using tools to break up the areas of the plate which would otherwise print as flat black. These then appeared was white pattern against a black background. In this example, colour has also been added by hand. This print probably had a devotional use. The subject depicts a miracle in which Saint Bernard receives divine grace in the form of breast milk from a statue of the Virgin Mary. Since the Virgin Mary’s breast milk also nurtured the infant Christ, the miracle represented the Virgin’s role as mediator between the faithful and Christ. |
| Bibliographic reference | Schreiber, W.L. Manuel. Gravures sur bois et sur metal, III, p.131, no 2566. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | 25934 |
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| Record created | June 30, 2009 |
| Record URL |
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