The Madonna of the Book by Sandro Botticelli was created in ca. 1481. The painting is in Museo Poldi Pezzoli. The size of the work is 58 x 39,6 cm and is made as an tempera on wood.
Also known as the Madonna of the book, this painting depicts the Virgin and Child reading a book that is only partially visible. The layout and decoration of the sheets made it possible to formulate the hypothesis that it is a Book of Hours, that is, one of those devotional manuals intended for the laity that had great circulation between the thirteenth and sixteenth centuries. Next to the open volume, on which Mary’s hand is delicately resting, there are other books and some simple objects that contribute to giving the image a familiar tone. The pyramidal composition of the two sacred figures leaves ample space, on the right side of the painting, to a window opening onto the landscape, from which a warm and crepuscular light comes.
About the Artist: Italian painter of the Early Renaissance Sandro Botticelli was born the city of Florence. From around 1461 or 1462 Botticelli was apprenticed to Fra Filippo Lippi. In 1472 Botticelli took on his first apprentice, the young Filippino Lippi, son of his master. Botticelli and Filippino’s works from these years, including many Madonna and Child paintings, are often difficult to distinguish from one another… Read more
