Workshop of Hans Rottenhammer (1564–1625): Virgin and Child in a Floral Landscape
This delicate Mannerist panel painting depicts the Virgin Mary nursing the Infant Jesus amidst a wooded landscape—a theme cherished in devotional art and characteristic of the output from the workshop of the German master Hans Rottenhammer. The work is distinguished by the graceful poses, the soft rendering of flesh tones, and the fluid drapery of the Virgin’s blue mantle. The background opens onto a distant landscape in shades of blue, while the surrounding foliage unfolds a highly symbolic iconographic program typical of the Counter-Reformation.
The roses crowning the composition evoke the Virgin’s primordial purity—traditionally described as the “rose without thorns” or the mystical rose—while their red hue foreshadows the blood shed during the Passion. In the foreground, the blue iris underscores Mary’s celestial queenship while heralding her future sorrows through its sharp, sword-like leaves. Finally, the subtle presence of a butterfly completes this religious allegory, symbolizing the chrysalis of earthly death, the Resurrection of Christ, and the immortality of the soul.
Workshop of Hans Rottenhammer (1564–1625)
Oil on wood, 17th century
Dimensions
With frame: 48 cm x 31 cm
Without frame: 36 cm x 17.5 cm
