Artwork
The Virgin and Child with Saint Anne
The Virgin and Child with Saint Anne is an oil painting by the Northern Renaissance artist Lucas Cranach the Elder. It dates from 1516 and is held in the collection of the Bavarian State Painting Collections.
About this work
Overview
Lucas Cranach the Elder’s oil on canvas, dated 1516, presents a small devotional scene titled *The Virgin and Child with Saint Anne*. The work is part of the collection of Munich’s Alte Pinakothek, where it remains on display as an example of early‑Renaissance religious painting.
Subject & Meaning
The composition brings together three generations of the Holy Family: Saint Anne, her daughter Mary, and the infant Jesus. Anne is seated beside a stone wall, Mary cradles the child, while a youthful figure—often interpreted as a young Mary or a attendant—kneels nearby, suggesting a moment of quiet reverence and familial intimacy.
Technique & Style
Cranach employs a restrained palette of reds, blues, and muted greens, allowing the figures to emerge from a softly lit landscape. The use of chiaroscuro creates gentle transitions between light and shadow, giving the scene a modest three‑dimensionality while maintaining the flat decorative quality typical of his workshop.
History & Provenance
The painting was completed in 1516, during Cranach’s prolific period serving the court of Saxony. It entered the Bavarian royal collection in the 19th century before being transferred to the Alte Pinakothek, where it has been catalogued as a representative work of the artist’s religious output.
Context
Created at a time when Protestant reform was beginning to influence German art, the work reflects a conventional Catholic iconography still prevalent in Cranach’s early career. The serene outdoor setting and the emphasis on familial bonds align with contemporary devotional trends that favored personal contemplation over grandiose narrative scenes.
Own this work as a print
Artist & collection
Artist
Lucas Cranach the Elder was a German Renaissance painter and printmaker in woodcut and engraving.
