Coronation of the Virgin

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The Coronation of the
Virgin Mary in Heaven
Roman Catholic Church
FeastMay 31st (until 1968)
August 22nd (present)
AttributesMary crowned in Heaven by Jesus or jointly with God the Father, surrounded by Cherubim and/or Saints
Rubens
, c. 1625

The Coronation of the Virgin or Coronation of Mary is a subject in

Mary as Queen of Heaven. In early versions the setting is a Heaven imagined as an earthly court, staffed by saints and angels; in later versions Heaven is more often seen as in the sky, with the figures seated on clouds. The subject is also notable as one where the whole Christian Trinity is often shown together, sometimes in unusual ways. Crowned Virgins are also seen in Eastern Orthodox Christian icons, specifically in the Russian Orthodox church after the 18th century. Mary is sometimes shown, in both Eastern and Western Christian
art, being crowned by one or two angels, but this is considered a different subject.

The subject became common as part of a general increase in devotion to Mary in the Early

May crownings
, although the crowning is performed by human figures.

Official status and feast

The belief in Mary as Queen of Heaven obtained the papal sanction of Pope Pius XII in his encyclical Ad Caeli Reginam (English: 'Queenship of Mary in Heaven') of October 11, 1954.[1]

The

Roman Catholic Church celebrates the feast every August 22, in place of the former octave day of the Assumption of Mary in 1969, a change made by Pope Paul VI. The feast was formerly celebrated on May 31, at the end of the Marian month, where the present liturgical calendar now commemorates the Feast of the Visitation. In addition, there are Canonical coronations
authorized by the Pope which are given to specific Marian images venerated in a particular place.

The act of the Virgin Mother of God being physically crowned as Queen of Heaven and Earth after her Assumption is a traditional Catholic belief echoed in the Rosary. The Coronation of the Blessed Virgin Mary is the fifth of the Glorious Mysteries of the Rosary.[2]

The Coronation of the Blessed Virgin is also a subject of devotion throughout Christianity. Beyond art, the Coronation is a central motif in Marian

Grand Marian Procession in Los Angeles, revived by the Queen of Angels Foundation
.

Origin

The scene is the final episode in the

Regina Coeli
, for Mary goes back to at least the 12th century.

The subject also drew from the idea of the Virgin as the “Throne of

Madonna and Child. It was felt that the throne itself must be royal. This is related to the popular sedes sapientiae
motif. In general, the art of this period, often paid for by royalty and the nobility, increasingly regarded the heavenly court as a mirror of earthly ones.

The subject seems to first appear in art, unusually, in England, where f. 102v in the

Feast of the Assumption, shows the death and Coronation of the Virgin, possibly the first Western depiction.[3] There are also a tympanum over the door of the church at Quenington in Gloucestershire of perhaps 1140 , and another damaged example from Reading Abbey (Reading, Berkshire).[3] From around this time it was rapidly adopted and is prominent in the portals of French Gothic cathedrals[4] such as Senlis, Chartres, Strasbourg, Laon, Notre-Dame de Paris, Amiens and Reims
, indeed most 13th-century cathedrals in France.

There are three examples extant on Devon rood screen dados: at East Portlemouth, Holne, and Torbryan.

Composition

In earlier versions, Mary and Christ often sit side-by-side on a wide throne, and typically are only accompanied by angels in smaller altarpieces, although these were often in polyptych form, and had saints on side-panels, now often separated. Later, God the Father often sits to the left of Christ, with the Holy Spirit hovering between them, and Mary kneeling in front and below them. Christ and the Father are normally differentiated by age, and to some extent by costume: God the Father is often wearing a beehive-shaped crown, reminiscent of a Papal tiara.

By the 15th century, more individual interpretations are found. From the High Renaissance onwards, the subject is often combined with an Assumption as a group of Apostles is on the earthly space below the heavenly scene, sometimes with Mary's empty tomb. As the central panel of altarpieces became larger until it abandoned the predella and side-panels, the Coronation was one subject suited to a very tall composition, especially if it had Apostles or other saints of importance to the community depicted on the lower sections.

Crown of Mary

The "crown" of Mary has been mentioned since the 6th century, as "corona virginum" (crown of virgins).

laurel crown in the Olympic Games signified victory, and a crown in gold and precious stones indicate power and wealth. In Christian iconography, the crown develops religious meanings. In an early mosaic in Ravenna, Italy, virgins present a crown to the child and Mary as a gesture of humility.[6] The Three kings present their crowns to the newly born Jesus as a symbol of secular power submitting to Christ.[6]
Marian crowns often include elements of victory and glory, especially during the Baroque period.

A crowned Mary is usually seen in

Jesse Trees, which stress her earthly royal descent from the House of David, something accorded considerable importance in the Middle Ages. In Santa Maria in Trastevere in Rome, she is shown as the mother of Christ, who participates in his kingdom.[7] The Latin text there, adapted from the Song of Songs
, reads: Tota pulchra es, amica mea, veni coronavi.

Individual works with articles

Gallery

To 1500

Unusual Trinities

  • Conventional depiction of the Trinity, with Christ showing the wounds of his Passion
    Conventional depiction of the Trinity, with Christ showing the wounds of his Passion
  • Enguerrand Quarton with Christ and God the Father as identical figures, as specified by the cleric who commissioned the work
    Enguerrand Quarton with Christ and God the Father as identical figures, as specified by the cleric who commissioned the work
  • Page from Book of Hours, with three human figures for the Trinity
    Page from
    Book of Hours
    , with three human figures for the Trinity
  • Jean Fouquet, also with three human figures, in this case three identical depictions of Jesus
    depictions of Jesus

Post-1500

Post-1800

  • Domingos Sequeira, c. 1830
    Domingos Sequeira, c. 1830
  • Stained glass window at St. Michael's Cathedral (Toronto) depicts Coronation of the Virgin.
    Stained glass window at
    St. Michael's Cathedral (Toronto)
    depicts Coronation of the Virgin.
  • 19th-century German altar
    19th-century German altar

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Pope Pius XII, Ad Caeli Reginam, 11 October 1954, Dicastero per la Comunicazione
  2. ^ "Glorious Mysteries", Vatican
  3. ^ a b Wright, 83
  4. ^ " The Coronation of the Virgin, 1324", National Gallery of Art
  5. ^ F Tschochner, Krone in Marienlexikon Eos St. Ottilien 1988, p.685
  6. ^ a b Tschochner 685
  7. ^ "Santa Maria in Trastevere – Rome, Italy". Living Mosaics. Mozaico.

References

  • Wright, Rosemary Muir, Sacred Distance: Representing the Virgin Mary in Italian Altarpieces, 1300-1630, 2006, Manchester University Press, ISBN 9780719055454

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Coronation of Mary.
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