The Grotto of the Virgin in San Marco: Artistic Reuse and Cultural Identity in Medieval Venice

Abstract

This article reconsiders the significance of artistic reuse in medieval Venice, examining the reinvention of three distinct artifacts of diverse provenance into a unified artwork in the late thirteenth or early fourteenth century in the ducal church of San Marco. Through an in-depth analysis of the material history of the work, known as the Grotto of the Virgin, this essay aims to solve one of the enigmas that surround its making and meaning: its function. The grotto is here associated with the feast of the Purification of the Virgin and identified as an unusual example of a light holder. By proposing a new approach to the study of the grotto and an innovative interpretation of its function and meaning in Venice, the article also addresses broader art historical questions concerning the nature of composite artifacts and the methodologies available for their study, the importance of the Fourth Crusade in the history of the treasury of San Marco, and the significance of artistic reuse in the construction of a Venetian public image at San Marco in the later Middle Ages.