Holy Figures Research Articles

Sacrum i przestrzeń. Hierotopia wyspy Kefalonia (wstępne rezultaty badania pilotażowego)

The Byzantine and post-Byzantine cultural heritage of Greek islands and peninsulas is still a blank slate for most Europeans. Only a few scholars from outside Greece focus their scientific studies on artefacts and anything which could be considered as so-called intangible cultural heritage of the humanity. The objective of the study was to investigate the hierotopy of the religious heritage of Cephalonia. I was interested in whether the island has hierotopic spaces, saturated with special power and the resulting special creation in the islanders’ minds. I searched for the beliefs about the origins of these places, extraordinary events, or the related sacred figures and organizations of spaces in the places used by Cephalonians for religious worship. The article uses qualitative methods of scientific research applied from the emic perspectives (free interviews, explicit and implicit participatory observation, photographic documentation and analysis of visual material). The research also focused on the secondary (historic and ethnographic) sources as well as on resources available on the Internet. The study has shown that an important role in Cephalonians’ religious imagination is played by the insular nature of the region and the elements: the sea surrounding the land and the earthquakes which cyclically strike the island. These specific natural conditions have given birth to local legends and hierotopic creations of places of religious worship. They have formed the pantheon of the holy figures, whose presence is emphasized by the specific hierotopy of the places of religious worship built on the island.

Grehan, James. Twilight of the Saints: Everyday Religion in Ottoman Syria and Palestine. New York: Oxford University Press, 2014. x+341 pp. $78.00 (cloth).

Grehan, James. <i>Twilight of the Saints: Everyday Religion in Ottoman Syria and Palestine</i>. New York: Oxford University Press, 2014. x+341 pp. $78.00 (cloth).

Shi'ism in South East Asia: 'Alid Piety and Sectarian Constructions ed. by Chiara Formichi and R. Michael Feener

Reviewed by: Shi'ism in South East Asia: 'Alid Piety and Sectarian Constructions ed. by Chiara Formichi and R. Michael Feener Majid Daneshgar Majid Daneshgar, Michael Feener, Chiara Formichit, Shi'ism, 'Alid, South East Asian religion, Shia Islam, Islamic magic chiara formichi and r. michael feener, eds. Shi'ism in South East Asia: 'Alid Piety and Sectarian Constructions. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2015. Pp. xvi + 397. There have been many academic studies examining the history and literature of minorities (e.g., Shi'is) in South East Asia, most recently the present work, produced by Chiara Formichi and Michael Feener, a collection of essays originating in a workshop held in the Asia Research Institute of the National University of Singapore in 2010. This book would have much to offer a reader approaching it through the lens of Southeast Asian Studies; nevertheless, given the context of this review I decided to highlight its references to Islamic rituals. [End Page 404] The book is divided into four parts. Part One deals with the historical foundations of Shi'ism in Southeast Asia. It includes a comprehensive chapter by Biancamaria Scarcia Amoretti that addresses the evolution of Shi'i devotional literature in light of the religious and political conditions of the Middle East and South East Asia. Part Two is dedicated to literary legacies. For instance, 'Alīb. Abī Ṭālib is known as the scribe of the Messenger of Islam in "the earliest surviving Javanese manuscript of Samud narrative dating from the late seventeenth or early eighteenth century" (53). As Ronit Ricci explains, 'Alī is portrayed in this manuscript as the faithful representative of Muhammad, who is fully knowledgeable. Ricci also shows that Javanese works display 'Alī as a great warrior who was able to defeat non-Muslims, including the Jewish people. Wendy Mukherjee introduces the theme of the piety (taqwa) and morality (akhlaq) of Fatima, the daughter of Muhammad, in Malay texts. A Malay folk prose narrative called Hikayat Ali Kawin or "The Story of 'Alī's Marriage" provides local young brides with ethical lessons. In an Acehnese text regarding Muhammad's admonitions, and thoroughly in contrast to Middle Eastern sources, the so-called sinless Fatima (the wife of 'Alī) is replaced with the one who is accused of a major sin, adultery. Muhammad is then shown instructing his daughter on how to obey her husband. For instance: "The woman who perishes in childbirth dies a martyr's death. There is no salvation for a woman who is unfaithful to her husband; hell is her portion" (75). This is despite the fact that upon translating and interpreting some Western and South Asian religious and mystical literature dealing with Muhammad and his household (ahl al-bayt), Malays added additional fictional/imaginary elements to the body of literature. They produced both concise and lengthy folk prose narratives and treatises focusing, for example, on 'Alī (Muhammad's cousin and son-in-law as well as the first imam of Shi'a) and Fatima, whose acts, according to Shi'ism, are errorless. Malay stories also suggest that one may easily manage one's life through learning about supernatural and magical qualities (khawass) found in the Malay version of holy figures' instructions (e.g. ahl al-bayt and Sufis). Following Edwin Wieringa, who had stated that "other texts in which 'Ali and Fātimah appear, seem to be of a more obscure nature, dealing with magic and eroticism/mysticism,"1 some chapters of this volume pay particular attention to such themes. [End Page 405] On this subject, Faried F. Saenong tries to demystify the role of 'Alid's family in Southeast Asian sexual arts. He outlines different stages of intercourse in Bugis manuscripts in which "'Alī and Fātima appear in a magic formula that is supposed to be uttered by the wife, in which 'Alī and Fātima are referred to as exemplary practitioners of foreplay" (107). Furthermore, there are several pre-twentieth-century Malay manuscripts with particular references to sensual pleasure (ladzat) and the sensation of orgasm (panas) discussed by Teren Sevea. Part Three revolves around modern Southeast Asia. For example, the chapter by R. Michael Feener argues the development and reception of an old [religious] feast...

The Life of the Virgin Mary According to Middle Byzantine Preachers and Hagiographers : Changing Contexts and Perspectives

This article examines the Byzantine homiletic and hagiographical treatment of the Virgin Mary, “Theotokos” or “Birth-giver of God”, seeking to determine why diverse narratives concerning this holy figure began to appear from about the early ninth century onward (assuming, in agreement with Phil Booth’s recent article, that the Greek prototype for the Georgian Life of the Virgin that is attributed to Maximos the Confessor should more probably be dated to the tenth century). The divergences, which may reflect various early apocryphal traditions, follow somewhat generic lines : whereas homilies, which were delivered in the context of liturgical vigils or eucharistic celebrations and incorporated well-known narratives such as the Protevangelium of James and versions of the Transitus Mariae, three Marian hagiographical works reflect a variant version of the Virgin’s legendary biography. The present study seeks not only to identify some of the more important variations in post-ninth-century narrative traditions surrounding the Virgin Mary, but also to examine the didactic purposes of preachers and hagiographers. It is likely both that ongoing Christological discussions played a part in inspiring Byzantine reflection on Mary, as human mother of Christ and intercessor, and that monastic revival caused greater focus on the Virgin’s ascetic and apostolic qualities in this period.

Le monastère du Pantocrator à Constantinople: le typikon et le monument

The typikon of Constantinople’s Pantocrator monastery provides information about the church’s topography, architecture, mosaics, and paintings, as well as about some of its icons. The Eleousa church, in contrast, cannot be seen just as a monastic church: it has a secular clergy, and its entrance doors seem to be outside the monastic precinct. Very little information is available about the decoration of both churches and about the mausoleum dedicated to saint Michael that lies between them. A few scenes are mentioned, but only in relation to their lighting. Possible locations for these scenes are suggested, but in an unexpected way - and not without some points of comparison: the Last Supper and the Washing of the Feet were situated in the sanctuary. More individual images are quoted, but even if they are generally called eikones, only some of them are what today would be called icons, i.e., representations of holy figures and scenes on wood panels. Most of these eikones are painted on walls or on pillars,...

Review and evaluate the role of holy Figures in architecture

Abstract. Pythagoras and his followers believed that all aspects of the universe, the earth and sky are reflected in the numbers. AfllaTvn terms of numbers represent the harmony of the universe and of Aristotle, the number of the origin and essence of everything. In Greek philosophy the odd numbers and even numbers of males and females, and this means that the numbers have saxhorn in other words, it is assumed they have intelligence. Filolaes language that Pythagoras was a great student, who said that anything that can recognize the number, it may not be possible without the understanding or knowing something. Another discussion about the value of their belief in the auspicious or unlucky. Sacred and religious value in the numbers or at different times in different nations was different. Christians, for example, four and seven are considered sacred and the Babylonians and the Persians have preferred number sixty and sixty multiples. In this paper, the numbers and the sanctity of the buildings proposed to be studied. And the sanctity of the sacred numbers can be addressed. Zero, one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, ten, and the number pi on a number of sacred buildings Zanbil ziggurat, respectively, Hegmataneh, Hanging Gardens of Babylon, the Mausoleum of Cyrus, Maya temples, set pyramids of Giza, the Kaaba, the shrine of Imam Khomeini, the building of the Palace of the Sun, thirty-three bridges in Isfahan, Imam Mosque in Isfahan, are examined. Four in the Kaaba and Zanbil ziggurat, referring to the four directions, integrity, discipline, wisdom. Seven in the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, the Mausoleum of Cyrus, referring to seven of the Koran, the Seven Fountains of Paradise, and Hell has seven floors.

Laser Scanners Technology Applications–The Case of Church of Holy Trinity and Figure of Panagia Pafsolipi, Heybeliada, Turkey

Laser scanning is a method commonly used to geometric documentation of monuments and historical landmarks. Laser scanners, as surveying instruments, combine principals of the sciences of topography and photogrammetry. The purpose of the paper is to evaluate a group of data collected using a laser scanner, concerning the attribution of geometry while drawing. The evaluation was accomplished comparing this group to another group of data, which was used as the reference data and was measured using a total station. Two objects of study were used and surveyed. The Greek Orthodox Church which is dedicated to Holy Trinity and is located in Heybeliada of Turkey and a famous figure of Holy Mother holding Jesus, known as Panagia Pafsolipi, which is placed at the interior of the Church. The comparison of the drawings that were exported using both data was satisfying. The divergence that was noticed is of the size of some millimeters. Such differences are acceptable for the most cases of architectural and archaeological documentation. This means that laser scanning, except from the fact that is a fast and efficient way of documentation, also provides products at level of accuracy that is close to the accuracy of the traditional documentation methods.

Religiosidade e suas manifestações no espaço urbano de Salvador

O Brasil foi descoberto e ocupado sob a égide do cristianismo, reforçado pelo movimento da Contrarreforma Católica. Promovida pela Igreja Católica Apostólica Romana, opunha-se à Reforma Protestante, reafirmava o uso das imagens e ditava uma série de normas a serem seguidas pelos fiéis, expressas nas Constituições Primeiras do Arcebispado da Bahia, de 1707. A Contrarreforma enfatizou a importância das manifestações públicas de fé, a maior participação da população nas coisas da Igreja. As procissões foram o exemplo típico dessas manifestações, promovidas, especialmente, pelas Irmandades e/ou ordens terceiras leigas. Nas procissões, ou cenários públicos de fé, as imagens das figuras santas e festas barrocas tiveram um papel primordial. Dentre elas, se resgatou um uso medieval das marionetes - acrescido da dramaticidade tirada do teatro de ópera -, transformadas em imagens de roca e de vestir. Estas constituíram, sobretudo no século XVIII, instrumentos eficientes para despertar a fé de leigos e religiosos. As ruas e praças - do antigo centro histórico da cidade do Salvador - serviram de grande cenário, no qual evoluía a maior parte das procissões. Destacavam-se as procissões dos Mistérios da Paixão, de Corpus Christi ou cenas correlatas, em datas fixas ou móveis, ao lado da multiplicação das representações da Santíssima Trindade, especialmente a cruz ou o Cristo Crucificado.

Murals in Buddhist Buildings: Content and Role in the Daily Lives of Isan People

This is a qualitative research aimed at assessing the current state of Buddhist murals in Northeastern Thailand, the elements of society they reflect and their role in everyday life. The research area for this investigation is Northeastern Thailand, colloquially known as Isan. Three ethnic communities were purposively selected to comprise the research populations. These were the Tai Korat of Nakhon Ratchasima Province, Tai Khmer of Buriram Province and Tai Lao of Ubon Ratchatani Province. Data collection tools were basic survey, participant and non-participant observation, structured and non-structured interview, focus group discussion and workshop. Results show that there are two major groups of Buddhist temple murals in Isan: those depicting ancient culture and customs painted prior to 1957 and contemporary murals painted after 1957. For the most part, murals are found on the walls of the ubosot and the instruction halls of the temples. The objectives of mural paintings were to worship the lord Buddha, decorate the temples, provide education to community members and maintain historical records. The paintings are often simple depictions of everyday life with holy or important objects and figures drawn at the tops of the walls, the main story in the middle of the walls and the common man or hell at the base of the walls. The disappointing element of mural creation is the common scenario of covering the murals after creation for protection. Also many people do not understand the stories represented in the drawings. The murals continue to play a role in encouraging community discourse and teaching people how to behave appropriately in society.

Madonna of the Fire

Forlì's Madonna of the Fire is a large fifteenth-century woodcut almost twenty inches high and sixteen inches wide. Mary is at the center, a crown on her haloed head and a flowered mantle over her shoulder, as she holds Jesus in her right arm and reaches towards him with her left. The Christ child reverses her gesture, reaching above her left hand with his right, and pulling at her neckline with his left. These figures appear under an arch, the top of which is filled with a small scene of the Crucifixion; Gabriel and another image of Mary enact the Annunciation in the spandrel above it. Small paired figures of saints flank the central image of the Madonna and Child, while a row of other holy figures—now damaged and truncated—fill the space below them.

On Icon Painting

Written around 1700, at a moment when Russian art was facing increasing secularization as well as the introduction of Italian and German post-Renaissance approaches, this treatise facilitates understanding of the Russian debates in religious aesthetics. Evfimy Chudovsky reflects on how God and saints should be depicted in icons to convey their transcendent deity. He critiques existing iconographies and offers recommendations for the correct representation of holy figures, including God, Christ, the Virgin Mary, Sophia, and others. He draws on a broad knowledge of the Greek tradition and historic conventions in general, and prioritizes theological matters over aesthetic concerns, thereby making a major contribution to arguments concerned with the development of icon painting.

Jan van Eyck: The Play of Realism (review)

Reviewed by: Jan van Eyck: The Play of Realism Tianna Uchacz Craig Harbison, Jan van Eyck: The Play of Realism, 2nd ed. (Chicago: University of Chicago Press 2011) 317 pp. Twenty years after the first publication of Craig Harbison’s Jan van Eyck: The Play of Realism comes this updated and expanded version of the popular text. Harbison’s commitment to his original argument and its format are reflected in the decision to leave the chapters of the first edition untouched (but for a handful of minor changes), which allows earlier incarnations of this book to remain almost as useful. The second edition, however, includes a new preface, an extended afterword, and an updated bibliographic commentary as a means of integrating the last twenty years of Eyckian research into the book. In the core chapters, Harbison presents a string of intimate readings of Van Eyck’s works, concentrating on the artist’s images of the Virgin and Child. Harbison situates Van Eyck and his patrons in a liminal space of their own design, negotiating between a variety of oppositions: convention and innovation; institutional religion and private devotion; spirituality and worldliness; sincerity and irony; humility and self-promotion. Harbison reads details of Van Eyck’s paintings to reveal instances of intentional slippage between these opposing categories. It would seem that Van Eyck and the patrons that he so carefully presented brought a measure of pragmatism to the construction of these images; dependent as their fortunes were on power politics in courtly and ecclesiastical circles, patrons like Nicolas Rolin and George van der Paele commissioned works that can sometimes be read to show a deep-seated skepticism about the authority of received social and religious structures and strictures. Harbison consciously and patiently attempts to orient his readers away from art historical currents that would see Van Eyck’s panels as pictorial manifestations of complex religious doctrine, since such views deny the primacy of the visual (accordingly, the Ghent Altarpiece gets short shrift). Rather, Harbison asserts that the personal circumstances and histories of Van Eyck’s patrons can help explain the idiosyncratic details of the artist’s panels. Van Eyck’s distinctive brand of realism creates visually convincing yet idealized worlds that reflect the personal needs and aspirations of the individuals who commissioned the works. The most noteworthy features of the second edition of Harbison’s book are its new preface and its afterword. The latter recapitulates and extends the arguments made in the earlier chapters while taking into account some of the notable Eyckian scholarship of the intervening two decades. Harbison draws on technical analyses of Van Eyck’s work, using infrared reflectograms to support his claim that the artist’s positioning of his holy figures and his portrait sitters was contrived and subtly adjusted to create and emphasize psychological connections. Harbison next uses research into Van Eyck’s feigned stone frames and textual inscriptions in and around the paintings to further his thesis concerning the artist’s playfulness—such experimentations emphasize Van Eyck’s interest in cultivating meaningful ambiguities around time, materiality, and local history. Finally, a few dense and hurried paragraphs mention newly uncovered biographical information about Van Eyck’s sitters that bear on Harbison’s [End Page 204] interpretations. The near list-like presentation gives a good sense of the unresolved yet evolving questions concerning the artist’s patrons. However, it reads at times like an anonymized version of Harbison’s bibliographic commentary and is one of the few instances where minor revisions to the original chapters might have been preferable. Harbison’s afterword precipitates a new section in the bibliographic commentary, and it is among the back pages of the book that some of the more recent Eyckian scholarship is explicitly acknowledged. In turn, this expansion is reflected in the addition of seventy-five sources to the bibliography itself. Harbison’s new preface reflects on the critical reception of the first edition and reiterates the author’s unwavering mission to move Eyckian scholarship away from elaborate theologically minded iconographic readings. The author acknowledges that the decision to annotate the text with a running bibliographic commentary rather than endnotes left the book open to criticism and has excluded it...

Obraz przyrody w pieśni religijnej

The objective of the research is to show that the use of nature imagery is a veryimportant aspect in religious songs. These images and symbols such as valleys,mountains, and flowers are used to describe the holy figures including Jesus, Mary,Joseph, God the Father, and the Holy Spirit. The analysis of lyrics in a variety ofPolish religious songs proves that nature is an important and underlying theme inthese texts.

Hymnography in a form of rhetoric: an interesting “marriage” of genres in a late Byzantine hymnographic ethopoiia

In codex Scorialensis graecus [ 403] X IV 8 was discovered a kanon, perhaps of Meletios Galesiotes, dedicated to the Adoration of the Magi, where the hymnographer employs the form of an ethopoiia. Consequently arises the question whether the text was a hymnographic ethopoiia or a kanon chanted in church. We can assume that it was a liturgical text, to which the author tried to add a dramatic character, providing signs of his educational background. The use of the dialogues by the hymnographer elaborates the narration of the Gospel. The kanon creates an imaginary story of the journey of the Magi, using psychological parameters and trying to sketch out their personality and emotions or even creating characters. The form of an ethopoiia describes better the motives, the actions, the character and the feelings of the holy figures and expresses a desire to add a “ dramatic” dimension in the kanon.

Architecture as icon: perception and representation of architecture in Byzantine art

Presenting the first formulation of the central subject, this volume challenges major assumptions long held by Western art historians and provides new ways of thinking about, looking at, and understanding Byzantine art in its broadest geographic and chronological framework, from A.D. 300 to the early nineteenth century. Byzantine art abandoned classical ideals in favor of formulas that conveyed spiritual concepts through stylized physical forms. Scholarship dealing with Byzantine icons has previously been largely focused on depictions of holy figures, dismissing representations of architecture as irrelevant space-filling background. Architecture as Icon demonstrates that background representations of architecture are meaningful, active components of compositions, often as significant as the human figures. The book provides a critical view for understanding the Byzantine conception of architectural forms and space and the corresponding intellectual underpinnings of their representation. Introduced by four thought-provoking essays, the catalogue divides the material as included in the exhibition into four categories identified as: generic, specific, and symbolic representations, and a final grouping entitled From Earthly to Heavenly Jerusalem. This handsomely illustrated volume addresses various approaches to depicting architecture in Byzantine art that contrast sharply with those of the Renaissance and subsequent Western artistic tradition.

Suitable Management Model for Economic, Social and Cultural Development Derived from Beliefs and Rites on PraBuddha Southern in Chachoengsao Province

Problem statement: In the present Wat Thai was the center of Thai social, The study of Wat Thai management model made us know about economy, social and community culture: (1) to study history, management model of Wat Sothornwanaram Vorawiharn Chacheongsoa province in economic, social and culture development form the believed and ceremonies about Pra Budhda Sothorn figure; (2) to study model of approximal management in WatSothornwararam Vorawiharn in economic, social and culture development form the believed and ceremonies about PraBudhda Sothorn figure. Approach: The purposive random sampling technique were key informants with 13 monks, 19 community leaders, casual informants with 16 monks 100 merchants and general informants with 60 peoples 56 pilgrims. Research methodology were qualitative research and colleting data by survey, observe, interview and focus group. Results: The story we know that the first name was Wat Soahong and had change to Wat Soatong, Wat Sothorn and raised to Royal temple named WatSothornwararam Vorawiharn. Pra Budhda Sothorn was holy meditation figure made of bronze and super natural power by flowed up in the river with 3 brothers: Laung Por Wat BanLaem, Laung Por Sothorn and Laung Por to Wat Bangplee. Management model of WatSothorn wararam Vorawiharn in Economic, social and culture development about Pra Budhda Sothorn were believed in safety by helping from Laung Por Budhda Sothorn to person who had good mind and good doing. Conclusion: The ceremonies to developed economic, social and culture modeling by to word of bed lucky, to make a votive offering to beseech, beg for good luck, give to charity and willing to have Pea Budhda Sothon image. The believed and ceremonies made economic, social and culture developed by made merit of the people.

:Saints and Their Cults in the Atlantic World

Saints and Their Cults in the Atlantic traces the changing significance of a dozen saints and holy sites from the fourth century to the twentieth and from Africa, Sicily, Wales, and Iceland to Canada, Boston, Mexico, Brazil, and the Caribbean. Scholars representing the fields of history, art history, religious studies, and communications contribute their perspectives in this interdisciplinary collection, also notable as the first English language study of many of the saints treated in the volume. Several chapters chart the changing images and meanings of holy people as their veneration traveled from the Old World to the New; others describe sites and devotions that developed in the Americas. The ways that a group feels connected to the holy figure by ethnicity or regionalism proves to be a critical factor in a saint's reception, and many contributors discuss the tensions that develop between ecclesiastical authorities and communities of devotees. Exploring the fluid boundaries between pilgrimage and tourism, ritual and knowledge, articles assess the importance of place in saint veneration and shed new light on the relationship between a saint's popularity and his or her association with holy relics, healing waters, and keepsakes purchased at a pilgrimage site. In addition to St. Benedict the Moor, medieval Irish pilgrimage art, and Ponce de Leon's Fountain of Youth, the authors discuss figures such as the Holy Child of Atocha, St. Winefride of Wales, Father Patrick Power, St. Amico of Italy and Louisiana, Our Lady of Prompt Succor, and the Icelandic bishop Gumundr Arason.

“Why Are You Mixing what Cannot be Mixed?” Shared Devotions in the Monotheisms

This paper focuses on the religious mixture in Mediterranean history. Here people of different religions have long lived intermingled. More generally, as it is widely known since at least Braudel’s major work, the history of this region has been characterized by a long‐term proliferation of traffic, contacts, and borrowings. To what extent has this close interaction also influenced religious behaviour? By examining several occurrences of religious mixture in this region, the paper will show that syncretism is not necessarily an ephemeral stage preceding the repression or the assimilation of other groups, nor is it confined to some historical situations. A broad perspective illustrates a surprising dissemination and a substantial continuity of these manifestations. Even a rough inventory gives an idea about the variety of common devotions at the same sanctuary, where holy figures often operate as catalysts of mixture. Taken together, these mixed devotional manifestations belie the tightness often attributed to monotheisms in the Mediterranean. In order to better understand these interfaith manifestations we should move away from doctrinal and institutional discontinuity between religions, and concentrate on elements of theological and devotional continuity.

Donors in the Frames of Icons: Living in the Borders of Byzantine Art

This article collects instances of Byzantine icons in which portraits have been placed not in the field of the holy figure, but within the icon's frame. The portraits are called donor portraits, as icons were gifts to God and the holy figures depicted. The article proposes that the portrait in the frame may be a recognition that the icon in question is an image not simply of the holy figure, but of an icon of that figure: of a site, that is, in which its power has been known to reside. The article points to the portrait in the frame as just one of many ways in which icons' frames become more elaborate in late Byzantine art, and it invites historians to pay closer attention to the way in which especially late Byzantine patrons, artists, and devotees tended, articulated, and sustained the durable charisma of their iconic images by attentive framing.

Bellini's Mother of God with infant Christ in Dobrota

In the parochial church of Saint Matthew in Dobrota, there is a preserved painting by Giovanni Bellini and his workshop, The Mother of God with the Infant Christ. In the iconographic sense it is customary: a bust of Mary with the little Christ in her arms, a parapet in the foreground, green drapery and a landscape in the background. The motif of the parapet indicates the separation of the holy figures from the earthly world. However, this border is not strong: the emotional closeness between the Mother and the Child is transferred into the everyday world of mortals. The parapet is also an association with the Holy Altar. It expresses the Eucharistie, sacramental role of Christ and the Mother of God. The idea about the Mother as the tabernacle of God is underscored by the motif of the curtain. The landscape in the background makes the painting especially valuable. The softness and transparency that characterize it point to a possibility that Bellini created this painting at the end of the 15th or the beginning of the 16th century, at the time when he was under the influence of the Arcadian circle from Asolo. The landscape on the painting is passage moralize, because all the elements - the tower, the garden, the spring, goats, swans - are clearly symbols of the Mother of God. This altar painting, purchased by an unknown native of the Boka Kotorska Bay, and brought back to his birthplace, proves that the spirit of the renaissance also touched the southeastern coast of the Adriatic.