St Ann with the Virgin Mary

St Ann was the mother of the Blessed Virgin Mary, born in Nazareth and brought up in the temple of Jerusalem. At the age of twenty she married Joachim of Nazareth and at the age of 40 she gave birth to her daughter Mary. Soon after the birth of Jesus she became a widow and died at an old age.

The subject of St Ann Teaching Mary depicts Ann sitting with an open book on her knees and a little girl, either kneeling or standing, by her side; sometimes Mary is depicted leaning over the book sitting on Ann’s lap. Ann is wearing a long robe, with a cloak over her shoulders and a veil or a scarf on her head. Usually the colours of religious iconography are ignored and rather than painting St Ann’s dress in red, it is blue or green, while the cloak is not only green, but also blue or yellow. Sometimes both are depicted wearing crowns which show their exceptional status.