The Virgin and Child with Saints Jerome and Dominic, Filippino Lippi, oil and tempera on poplar, Italy ca. 1485, National Gallery, London. Seated toward the center of the vast greenery sits the Virgin Mary, gently breastfeeding the infant Christ. A smaller-sized bird is seen, almost camouflaged with nature, also feeding its young offspring. Towards the left side of the Holy Mother kneels Saint Jerome, looking up in extreme admiration and loyalty. Clutched with both hands is a stone, which is said to have pounded against his chest in order to resist sin and temptation. On the opposite side. Saint Dominic kneels, his mind cluttered with the words of his book. The white lily, which is held in his right hand, signifies the purity of the Virgin. When Filippino originally created this masterpiece in 1485, it stood on the altar of a chapel owned by the ruling Rucellai family. It was, and currently is known as, the church of Saint Pancrazio in Florence, Italy. The National Gallery sealed the piece with a nineteenth-century reproduction of how the original is believed to have looked. This includes the extremely detailed panel toward the bottom of the frame, containing major religious figures, Christ, Saint Francis, and Mary Magdalene between the Rucellai family’s coat of arms.
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