Ann herself making the third: the Virgin Mary with Baby Jesus and St Ann

The subject of The Holy Family also includes the paintings of St Ann Herself Making the Third and Holy Relatives. In the painting St Ann Herself Making the Third Jesus is portrayed with His mother, the Blessed Virgin, and His grandmother, St Ann. Ann is holding a stalk with three flowers which symbolises the Holy Trinity or three parts of the Rosary; Infant Jesus is reaching for the flower or is pointing at it. The narrative of the Holy Relatives focuses on Jesus among His relatives, who are not only blood relations, but also followers of the faith of Christ. It comes from the legend that St Ann was married three times and had one daughter called Mary in each of her marriages, who had descendants.