"Madonna dal collo lungo" Oder the Common Consent of the Body

Abstract

The writer discusses Parmigianino's altar painting Madonna dal collo lungo (Uffizi, Florence) and a partial copy of the work by an unknown artist in the Giustiniani Collection (Gemaldegalerie, Potsdam, Germany). The copy, which focuses on the faces of the five young secondary figures of the left of the painting, depicts the embodiments of the five senses. The original painting presents a vision. The Mother of God, the “bride” of the Song of Songs, the symbol of “ecclesia,” is seen and depicted as though in a mirror.