Traditions antiques dans les scènes de l'Annonciation

Abstract

In the numerous scenes of Annunciation there are two iconographie patterns discerned : 1. the Virgin Mary while spinning, attested since the 4th cent, in the Christian East, and 2. the Virgin Mary with the Book, typical of the Christian West from the 13th cent. on. It is argued by the author that the former pattern originated not only in the apocryphs (as it is hitherto assumed), but also, and even primarily, in the ancient Greek art where the spinning symbolizes moral qualities and the social standing of a woman.