Painting Madonna And Child, Venetian-cretan Area, 17th Century.

Madonna with Child also called “Mother of Consolation or Mother Consoling” painted in egg tempera and gold on wood. The Virgin holds the baby Jesus in her arms. She is slightly turned to the left, holds the Child with her right hand and brings her left hand to touch his left knee. Over her dress she wears a red cloak tied to her chest from which a white embroidered veil can be seen. Christ wears a dark dress, and is wrapped under a red cloak while holding his right hand raised as a gesture of blessing.
cm. 29X25 without frame and 34X29.5 cm. with frame
The image of the Madonna of Consolation reappears in Cretan iconography towards the end of the 15th century, becoming popular until the 17th century. The original cult dates back to the early 8th century in the Greek monastery of Vatopedi on Mount Athos with the name of Paramythia or "Madonna del Conforto" and was taken up by Cretan painting and painted widely from 1490 to 1520 in the Ionian Islands; it was then exported to Venice and Rome where a 16th century church is dedicated to her, and finally to Sicily. Byzantine art clearly shows the Venetian and Tuscan influence of the 15th century. In fact, the transparent veil under the Madonna's maphorion (instead of the oriental hood) and the way in which the Blessed Mother's dress is tied on the chest, derive from Italian art. Finally, the elegant punching of the halos shows this influence even more precisely. This painting represents an important historical-artistic document between Eastern and Western Christianity. The painting is in its first patina.