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Blessed Osanna with an angel wrestles the devil to the ground

Luigi Costa

Mantova Museo Urbano Diffuso

Mantova Museo Urbano Diffuso

The work is part of the donation made by count Alessandro Magnaguti, who in turn probably received it from the Andreasi, whose last descendant, Luigia, married Giovanni Battista Magnaguti in 1780. The author of the painting is unknown, although it has often been attributed to the Costa workshop, the school of Lorenzo Costa the Young and his brother Luigi. Some scholars have hypothesised that it is a copy of a more valuable painting now lost. The impression, in fact, is that the style, although stiff, is reminiscent of that of Giulio Romano, who created a similar drawing. Some comparisons have been made with the Tradizione delle Chiavi, the only work by Costa that has survived to this day. In any case, the dramatic quality of the scene depicted is worthy of note. The mystic Mantuan figure rises in the sky, full of dark clouds, in the act of squashing a goat-like and feral Satan. The tail of the demon is like a snake unfolding in the direction of the mountains in the background. Next to Osanna, an angel with large wings seems to comfort her and support her, also immobilizing the enemy.

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  • Title: Blessed Osanna with an angel wrestles the devil to the ground
  • Creator: Luigi Costa
Mantova Museo Urbano Diffuso

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