Crescent Madonna

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Figure of the Crescent Madonna in the Hortus Deliciarum by Herrad von Landsberg (12th century)

As a crescent moon Madonna or Radiant Madonna and also Madonna in Radiant wreath (also apocalyptic Madonna ), a portrait of Mary is referred to in Christian iconography , which is characterized by the pericope of the apocalyptic woman in the Revelation of John . The Mother of God stands on the crescent moon ; mostly she holds the baby Jesus in her arms.

Origins

The image of the Madonna of the Crescent moon goes back to the account of John's vision of a cosmic pregnant woman, who is haunted by a dragon and who stands on the moon, crowned with stars and clothed in the sun, and who is exposed to the last apocalyptic battle between the dragon and the Archangel Michael becomes.

“Then a great sign appeared in the sky: a woman clothed in the sun; the moon was under her feet and a wreath of twelve stars on her head. She was pregnant and screamed in pain in her labor. Another sign appeared in the sky: a dragon, large and fiery red, with seven heads and ten horns, and with seven diademed heads. Its tail swept a third of the stars from the sky and threw them down to the earth. The dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth; he wanted to devour her child as soon as it was born. And she gave birth to a child, a son, who will rule over all nations with an iron scepter. And her child was caught up to God and to his throne. (Rev 12: 1-5 EU ) "

Altarpiece with the Madonna of the Crescent Moon in the Chapel of St. Eusebius by Bernhard Strigel (1486)

Representations

The oldest known pictorial representation of the Crescent Madonna can be found in the Hortus Deliciarum . In the Gothic, the traits of the apocalyptic woman increasingly change into the Madonna-like like the initial A in the gradual of St. Katharinenthal (around 1312). The oldest known wooden sculpture is the so-called deer madonna (Erfurt, Angermuseum, around 1370).

At the end of the Middle Ages the type was also given the title Our Lady of Victory . In the 15th century, crescent moon madonnas were mostly executed as individual figures, in candlesticks and as altar components. Occasionally the enthroned Madonna was also shown connected with the moon symbol (Madonna from Ulm, around 1420/25).

The crescent moon motif became so popular that older Madonnas were subsequently given a halo and crescent moon (candlestick Madonna Bad Doberan 1300, supplemented by the 15th century). In the 16th century the snake came to the crescent moon as a symbol of evil, whose head is trodden down by Mary, cf. ( Gen 3.15  EU ). The type of the Crescent Madonna changed in the 17th and 18th centuries. Century in the type of Maria Immaculata .

Crescent Madonna on altars

The crescent moon Madonna can be found on a number of altars, especially in Mecklenburg, but also in neighboring parts of Brandenburg, for example in the village church of Pröttlin . On the carved altar in Röbel , which was made in the 16th century and found its place in the right aisle of St. Marien , the crowned crescent Madonna with the baby Jesus is surrounded by figures of saints: St. George and Barbara, St. Katerina and Jacob, St. Jost and Apollonia, St. Hedwig and Nicolaus.

Crescent Madonna on seal and coat of arms

The crescent moon Madonna can also be found on coats of arms and seals , for example in the coat of arms of Waldshut-Tiengen . In some other coats of arms the crescent moon indicates Mary; For example, in the coat of arms of Langenmosen there are the symbols of Mary, the crescent moon (also called "half moon") and the crown of Mary .

See also

literature

Web links

Commons : Crescent Madonna  - Collection of images, videos and audio files
Wiktionary: Mondsichelmadonna  - explanations of meanings, word origins, synonyms, translations

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c Crescent Madonna . In: H. Sachs, E. Badstübner, H. Neumann: Christian iconography in key words. Unchanged edition. Leipzig 1988, ISBN 3-7338-0095-8 , p. 261.
  2. ↑ Hortus Deliciarum. In: H. Sachs, E. Badstübner, H. Neumann: Christian iconography in key words. Unchanged edition. Leipzig 1988, ISBN 3-7338-0095-8 , p. 185.
  3. ↑ Stefan Kummer : Architecture and fine arts from the beginnings of the Renaissance to the end of the Baroque. In: Ulrich Wagner (Hrsg.): History of the city of Würzburg. 4 volumes; Volume 2: From the Peasants' War in 1525 to the transition to the Kingdom of Bavaria in 1814. Theiss, Stuttgart 2004, ISBN 3-8062-1477-8 , pp. 576–678 and 942–952, here: p. 646.
  4. ↑ Stefan Kummer: Architecture and fine arts from the beginnings of the Renaissance to the end of the Baroque. 2004, p. 646.
  5. ↑ Figure in: Institute for Monument Preservation (Ed.): The architectural and art monuments in the GDR. Neubrandenburg district . Berlin 1982, p. 326.
  6. ^ Community Langenmosen: coat of arms. In: House of Bavarian History . Retrieved March 5, 2019 .