Madonna met kind 1510 - 1568

Jan van Rillaer created this small engraving of the Madonna and Child sometime in the 16th century. The image, rendered in fine lines, depicts Mary gazing tenderly at the infant Jesus. Produced in the Netherlands, this work reflects the religious climate of the time, as the region was undergoing significant upheaval due to the Protestant Reformation. Images of the Madonna and Child were common, but their meanings were shifting. Were they seen as objects of devotion, or sources of idolatry? Rillaer was a member of the Guild of Saint Luke in Antwerp; an organization with strong institutional ties to the Catholic church that shaped the production and reception of art. To understand the complex cultural history surrounding images like this, we can consult period documents and religious texts, guild records, and histories of the Reformation, all resources that help us to interpret the artwork in its proper social and institutional context.