Artwork
The Holy Family
The Holy Family is an unspecified painting. It dates from 1508 and is held in the collection of the Statens Museum for Kunst.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
The painting depicts the Holy Family, a traditional religious subject showing the Virgin Mary, the Christ Child, and Saint Joseph grouped together as a sacred domestic unit. As a religious work, it draws on devotional iconography that emphasized the humanity of Christ through his bonds with his mother and her husband, presenting the family as a model of piety and intimate holiness.
The subject matter aligns the work within a long devotional tradition in which the Holy Family served both as a focus of personal meditation and as an affirmation of Christian doctrine concerning the Incarnation. By including Joseph alongside Mary and Jesus, the image visually asserts his role as guardian and head of the household, a theme that became especially prominent in late medieval and early modern religious art.
History & Provenance
The composition shows the Virgin Mary, Saint Joseph and the infant Jesus, a subject identified in the museum’s description.
The Holy Family is a religious painting dated to 1508, recorded as an unknown‑artist work in the corpus. It was created in 1508 and entered the collection of the Statens Museum for Kunst, where it remains. The composition shows the Virgin Mary, Saint Joseph and the infant Jesus, a subject identified in the museum’s description.
The work measures 422 cm in height and 489 cm in width. No documentation of a specific commission or earlier ownership exists.
Overview
The work depicts a three‑person grouping traditionally identified as the Holy Family. A central female figure cradles a naked infant, while a male figure stands to her right. The woman wears a head covering and a dark cloak; the man is dressed in a light‑colored robe. The painting’s surface shows considerable age, with scratches, wear, and a muted, faded palette.
Technique & Style
The artist employs chiaroscuro, using contrasts of light and shadow to model the figures against a dim background. The subdued coloration and soft modeling suggest a late Renaissance or early Baroque approach, though the exact stylistic affiliations remain uncertain due to the painting’s deteriorated condition.
Artist & collection
- The Holy Family
The Holy Family with little John
The Virgin and Child with a Donor
Madonna and Child with Saints Jerome and Francis
Virgin and Child with Saints Jerome and John the Baptist
Madonna and Child with Saints Jerome and Mary Magdalen
Madonna and Child
Virgin and Child with Two Angels
Madonna and Child with two Saints
Mary, John and Christ as a Child
The Virgin and Child
Madonna and Child with Saints