 |
| The Egerton Master (attributed), Annunciation From Hours of Rene of Anjou French (Paris), 1410 London, British Library MS Egerton 1070, fol. 15v |
So far the images of the Annunciation that we have
looked at set the scene in a “no-space-space”, with little or no indication of
local surroundings. Now we will look at
some that take place in a defined and very special place, the garden.
Annunciation images set in a garden have a very
special resonance. They hark back to the
first garden, the Garden of Eden, in which Adam and Eve were placed by God
following their creation (Genesis 2:8) and from which they were excluded
following the Fall (Genesis 3:23-24).
Setting the
Annunciation in a garden is a very deliberate reference to the reconstruction
of the world which Jesus, as the new Adam (1 Corinthians 15:21-22), was going to accomplish through the “Yes” of Mary, who was seen as the second Eve, a new
mother for humanity (For what the virgin Eve had bound fast through
unbelief, this did the virgin Mary set free through faith.”).1
 |
| Melchior Broederlam, Annunciation Flemish, 1393-1399 Dijon, Musée des Beaux-Arts |
Some Annunciation garden images make this
connection very explicit by including visual references to the expulsion of
Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden.
They may appear as a story seen in the background of the image or as a
decorative element within the setting. 2 But, whether or not the reference is shown it
is always lingering at the edge of consciousness, just offstage.
 |
Fra Angelico, Annunciation
Italian, 1426
Madrid, Museo del Prado
|
Another resonance of the
garden setting is with the idea of the closed garden, the hortus conclusus. Invariably
the garden in which the Annunciation imagery is set is a walled or otherwise
closed garden, though it may have a doorway or gate through which further extensions into space may be seen.
In addition, earlier interpretations of this passage from the Song of Songs had seen the text as a description of the relationship between Christ and the Church and had also identified Mary as a personification of the Church as well. 3
The idea of representing the Annunciation in a garden context did not die out with the end of the Renaissance. It had a revival in the nineteenth century, especially among the English Pre-Raphaelites.
© M. Duffy, 2014
 |
Fra Angelico, Annunciation
Italian, 1442-1444
Florence, Monastery of San Marco
|
The idea of
the enclosed garden as an allegory for Mary’s virginity was a very popular one that rose to popularity from around 1400 and is still operative to some extent. The idea comes from the Song of Songs, a
Biblical text that has from quite early on been interpreted as referring to
Mary and from which many of the titles by which she is known derive, such as
Tower of Ivory and Tower of David. The Song
of Songs refers to the woman as “A garden enclosed, my sister, my
bride, a garden enclosed, a fountain sealed!” (Song of Songs 4:12).
 |
Annunciation from Hours of Louis de Savoie French (Savoy), 1445-1450 Paris, Bibliotheque nationale de France MS Latin 9473, fol. 17 |
In addition, earlier interpretations of this passage from the Song of Songs had seen the text as a description of the relationship between Christ and the Church and had also identified Mary as a personification of the Church as well. 3
 |
| Robert Campin, Annunciation Flemish, c. 1420-1425 Madrid, Museo Nacional del Prado |
Mary is most
frequently presented as seated or standing in a portico or other covered area
adjacent to the garden and Gabriel is most frequently shown standing or kneeling within
the garden proper in these images.
 |
Filippo Lippi, Annunciation Italian, 1448-1450 London, National Gallery |
The
structures provide a frame for the figure of the Virgin and reinforce the
closure implied by the walled garden.
This tells us that Mary is prepared for the angelic encounter, even if
she is unaware of being so.
 |
Fra Carnavale, Annunciation Italian, ca. 1448 Washington, D.C., National Gallery of Art |
The settings
also provide a suitable location for Mary to stand or sit in the proximity of the
closed garden while pursuing her daily tasks, which are variously shown as
reading, praying or spinning wool.
 |
Attributed to Petrus Christus, Annunciation known as the Friedsam Annunciation Flemish, ca. 1450 New York, Metropolitan Museum of Art |
 |
Piero della Francesca, Annunciation Italian, 1448-1465 Arezzo, Church of San Francesco |
 |
Leonardo da Vinci, Annunciation Italian, 1472-1474 Florence, Uffizi Gallery |
 |
Vittore Carpaccio, Annunciation Italian, 1504 Venice, Galleria Granchett. Ca d'Oro |
 |
Andrea del Sarto, Annunciation Italian, 1512-1513 Florence, Galleria Palatina, Palazzo Pitti |
The idea of representing the Annunciation in a garden context did not die out with the end of the Renaissance. It had a revival in the nineteenth century, especially among the English Pre-Raphaelites.
 |
| George Poppleton, Annunciation English, 1845 Paris, Musée des Beaux-Arts de la Ville de Paris, Petit Palais |
 |
| Arthur Hughes, Annunciation English, ca.1858 Birmingham (UK), Birmingham Museums and Art Gallery |
 |
Edward Burne-Jones, Annunciation
English, 1876-1879
Port Sunlight, Lady Lever Art Gallery
|
 |
| Edward Burne-Jones, Annunciation English, 1888 Rome, St. Paul's Within the Walls Episcopal Church |
 |
| Frederick James Shields, Annunciation English, 1894 Manchester UK, Manchester Art Gallery |
 | |
|
 |
John William Waterhouse, Annunciation
English, 1914
Private Collection
|
And it continues today.
 |
John Collier, Annunciation
American, 2000
McKinney, Texas, St. Gabriel Church
|
 |
John Collier, Annunciation
American, 2008
Charleston, WV, Sacred Heart Co-Cathedral
|
These recent works by the American John Collier demonstrate that the idea of setting the Annunciation in an outdoor, garden setting, with all its associated references, is one that still has resonance.
To be continued in the following:
Annunciation, Part I, Simplicity
© M. Duffy, 2014
___________________________________________________________________
- Irenaeus of Lyons, Against Heresies (Adversus haereses), Book III, Chapter 22, Section 4. Translated by Alexander Roberts and William Rambaut. From Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol. 1. Edited by Alexander Roberts, James Donaldson, and A. Cleveland Coxe. (Buffalo, NY: Christian Literature Publishing Co., 1885.) Revised and edited for New Advent by Kevin Knight. <http://www.newadvent.org/fathers/0103322.html;.
- See for example my in depth discussion of the Prado Annunciation by Fra Angelico at http://imaginemdei.blogspot.com/2012/03/annunciation-world-created-anew.html
- Daley, Brian E., "The 'Closed Garden' and the 'Sealed Fountain': Song of Songs 4:12 in the Late Medieval Iconography of Mary", in Elizabeth B. Macdougall, editor, Medieval Gardens, Washington, DC, Dumbarton Oaks Colloquium, 1986, pp. 253-277.
No comments:
Post a Comment