Explore Botticelli's 'Trinity Altarpiece'
Learn more about the figures and their meanings in this painting
This altarpiece is one of Sandro Botticelli's most important paintings in the United Kingdom. Designed to be set on an altar, a vision of the Trinity dominates the work.
Trinity with Saint Mary Magdalen and Saint John the Baptist, Archangel Raphael and Tobias (1491/1494) by Sandro BotticelliThe Courtauld Institute of Art
The Trinity
The three figures line up vertically along the centre of the image, as the eight flanking angels emphasise the Trinity as a group entity – the Three-in-One.
Here we see God the Father with a grey beard, along with his crucified son Christ. Between them flies the Holy Spirit in the form of a Dove.
Crucified Christ
Botticelli has depicted Jesus as the crucified Christ, with nailed hands and feet.
Christ
Christ wears a crown of thorns, as an elaborately designed halo emphasises his title as Son of God.
God the Father
God the Father sits on a throne, supporting the cross with his two hands.
Dove the Spirit
Botticelli has evidently had difficulty picturing the Dove in between Christ’s head and the cross of wood. As a result, just one wing is suggested behind Christ’s halo.
Tobias and the Archangel Raphael
On the bottom left we see the figures of Tobias and the Archangel Raphael walking hand-in-hand. Raphael is pictured with billowing robes, carrying a small box while Tobias can be seen carrying a small fish, dangling from his hands.
Rays radiate from Tobias’ head, unlike the full halo that surrounds the archangel Raphael’s head.
The story of Tobias comes from the Old Testament book of Tobit. Tobias is sent on a journey to Medea, where he is sent to collect a debt for his father Tobit, who is blind.
En route, Raphael instructs Tobias to gut a fish and collect its liver, heart and gall, which Raphael in turn rubs onto Tobit’s eyes and cures his blindness.
Tobias, healing and pilgrimage
As such, this story of Tobias and the archangel Raphael became associated with healing and pilgrimage, often depicted within a landscape of rolling hills. The story remained a theme in Florentine art.
Zooming out, we can sense the abrupt shift in scale of Tobias and the archangel Raphael in relation to the other depicted figures.
Trinity with Saint Mary Magdalen and Saint John the Baptist, Archangel Raphael and Tobias (1491/1494) by Sandro BotticelliThe Courtauld Institute of Art
John the Baptist
Flanking the Trinity on the right is St John the Baptist. He gazes out to the viewer, capturing their attention, recognisable through his fur garment. In Mark's Gospel, John the Baptist is described as 'clothed with camel's hair'.
His gesturing hands divert the viewer's attention to the Trinity, emphasising its central importance in the altarpiece.
John the Baptist and Florence
The presence of John the Baptist tells us a bit about the commission of this altarpiece.
John the Baptist was the patron saint of Florence in Italy, the city in which this altarpiece was painted and originally positioned.
Mary Magdalen
Flanking the Trinity on the left we see Mary Magdalen, with her hands raised in prayer. Her repentant attitude can be understood as a model example for viewers.
Her long flowing hair covers her body.
Mary Magdalen and the convent
This altarpiece has been linked to the convent of Santa Elisabetta delle Convertite in Florence, a community of nuns who welcomed repentant prostitutes.
In line with this theme, Mary Magdalen was understood as one who abandoned a worldly life for one of penitence and devotion.
The barren landscape
Both John the Baptist and Mary Magdalen are depicted within a barren landscape, calling to mind the desert into which they both retired to penance.
From what we have seen, the accompanying figures of Mary Magdalen, John the Baptist echo the Florentine convent’s mission of protection and rescue.
Trinity with Saint Mary Magdalen and Saint John the Baptist, Archangel Raphael and Tobias (1491/1494) by Sandro BotticelliThe Courtauld Institute of Art
The cherubim
Angels (also known as cherubim) were often represented as a winged head, and were generally depicted as being in attendance of the other figures.
Botticelli often delegated portions of larger works to assistants.
It is likely that the heads of these angels were painted by members of the workshop, in contrast to the main figures that exhibit Botticelli’s characteristic graceful line.
The angels surround the central vision of the Trinity, emphasising the Trinity as the main subject of the altarpiece.
Want to know more about this altarpiece? Watch Dr Scott Nethersole, Senior Lecturer in Italian Renaissance Art, 1400-1500, at The Courtauld Institute of Art, London discuss this painting in detail.
Explore more of The Courtauld's collection.
Sandro Botticelli (around 1445-1510), The Trinity with Saints Mary Magdalen and John the Baptist, Around 1491-94 , The Courtauld, London (Samuel Courtauld Trust) © The Courtauld
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