Virgin of the Long Thigh
Original title: Virgin of the Long Thigh; the Virgin reclining on the ground her left leg outstretched supporting the infant Christ who reaches across to the infant John the Baptist, Joseph seated at left, buildings in the background
kurzbeschreibung
Stretched out on the ground, Mary holds the infant Jesus, her left leg extended far from her body. The child turns toward John the Baptist, while Joseph sits to the left; buildings form the background. Marco Dente's engraving Maria mit dem langen Bein was made around 1518–27.
Description
The layout is symmetrical: the group of figures in the middle, architecture behind. Mary rests on the ground, her left leg stretched out long, the Christ Child lying on her and leaning toward John. Joseph sits on the left and turns toward the child. Buildings rise in the background, and in a window opening a person can be seen looking at the event.
Context
Marco Dente, an Italian Renaissance engraver, made this print after a design by Raphael that circulated through an engraving by Marcantonio Raimondi. The dating around 1518–27 falls within Dente's Roman period, when he worked in Raimondi's workshop. The motif of the reclining Madonna with the long leg was a common image in the Renaissance, emphasizing the familiar relationship between Mary and the child.
Impact
Calm and balanced, the engraving conveys a mood that is intimate and at the same time elevated. Fine lines and hatching give the figures body and depth, while the architecture in the background suggests spatial depth and draws the viewer into the event.
Technique
The lines were engraved into a metal plate and then printed on paper—an engraving. Dente used fine lines and cross-hatching to shape light and shadow, so that the print appears monochrome but rich in detail. It is trimmed and measures 39.5 × 27.3 cm.
AI-generated description text
Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art · Public Domain (CC0 1.0)