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Mary Magdalene

Dante Gabriel Rossetti1877/1877

Delaware Art Museum

Delaware Art Museum
Wilmington, DE, United States

Although the model for this painting has not been identified, it may have been Rossetti’s housemaid, whose name has come down to us in the present day only as “Mary.” She personifies the archetypical Pre-Raphaelite notion of beauty with her red hair, large lips, and enticing brown eyes.

Biblical themes were particularly prevalent in the early work of the Pre-Raphaelites. The stimulus for the creation of this relatively late work, however, is not known. Certainly the concept of the fallen woman was one which Rossetti took up repeatedly.

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  • Title: Mary Magdalene
  • Creator Lifespan: 1828/1882
  • Creator Nationality: British
  • Creator Gender: Male
  • Creator Death Place: Birchington, England
  • Creator Birth Place: London, England
  • Date: 1877/1877
  • Signatures, Inscriptions, and Markings: DGR 1877 (LLC)
  • Physical Dimensions: w26.125 x h306.875 in (Complete)
  • Painter: Dante Gabriel Rossetti
  • Credit Line: Samuel and Mary R. Bancroft Memorial, 1935
  • Provenance: Photograph and digital image © Delaware Art Museum. Not for reproduction or publication.
  • Type: Paintings
  • Rights: Photograph and digital image © Delaware Art Museum. Not for reproduction or publication.
  • External Link: http://emuseum.delart.org:8080/emuseum/view/objects/asitem/items$0040:6458
  • Medium: Oil on canvas
Delaware Art Museum

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