Madonna with a Rose
1595–1616
Medium
Etching
Dimensions
Sheet (trimmed): 8 in. × 5 9/16 in. (20.3 × 14.2 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, 1930
Accession Number
30.55.13
Tags
Art Historical Context
Jacques Bellange’s “Madonna with a Rose,” created between 1595 and 1616, is a delicate etching that captures the tender intimacy of the Madonna and Child. Measuring just 8 by 5 9/16 inches, this small print exemplifies the refined printmaking tradition of early seventeenth-century France. Bellange, active in the court of Lorraine, used the etching technique to achieve fine, expressive lines that convey both spiritual grace and human warmth. The rose held by the Virgin is a longstanding symbol of purity and divine love in Christian art, adding layers of meaning to this devotional image. As an ...
About the Artist
Jacques Bellange · 1570–1616
Jacques Bellange (c. 1575–1616) was a French artist and printmaker active in the independent Duchy of Lorraine, now part of France. Believed to have been born in the Bassigny region south of Nancy, his early life and training remain sparsely documented, with no records of specific teachers or mentors. He first appears in historical records in 1595 at La Mothe, where he took on an apprentice, sugge...