Maria met het Christuskind op haar schoot 1658 - 1677

This mezzotint of the Virgin and Child was produced by Wallerant Vaillant, a Dutch Golden Age artist, in the mid-17th century. The image participates in a long and fascinating history of Madonna imagery in European art. Here, Mary nurses the infant Jesus, an act of profound intimacy that emphasizes her humanity. The print medium was ideally suited to democratize religious imagery. Consider the cultural context: the Counter-Reformation, the rise of print culture, and the intense religious debates in the Dutch Republic at the time. By exploring period devotional literature, economic records of print distribution, and the biographies of artists like Vaillant, we can start to understand the complex interplay between art, faith, and society. It reminds us that the meaning of art is always shaped by the circumstances of its creation and reception.