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Black Madonna
of Anjony
(France)
8 inches high
Hand painted Gypsumstone statue
$40.00
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#SS-BMA
[before 930 CE]
Anjony: Seat of Wisdom
The resplendent
Madonna from Anjony, France, is richly formal.
The original is in the chapel of
the beautifully preserved 15th century fort Château d'Anjony near the village
Tournemire, Cantal department, Auvergne. It is probably 17th century and made of
painted wood.
She shares the geometric pattern
of the robes of the much more famous Black Madonna of Le-Puy, and may well have
been created as a copy of Her.
The hand postures of mother and
child differ slightly from those of Le-Puy, but coincide exactly with Our Lady
of the Snows in Aurillac, who is definitely considered a copy of Our Lady of
Le-Puy.
This Lady is a perfect example of
the 'Seat of Wisdom' or 'Majesty' type of Madonna, characterized by the mother
seated on an ancient throne without a back or with a low back, holding the child
squarely on her lap, and both looking straight ahead.
You won't find demurely down cast
eyes in these images, but a powerful straight stare. In the language of medieval
symbolism this means that Mary is the throne of Jesus, the Seat of Wisdom. From
her lap spring wisdom and power.
She is represented as the Christian embodiment of Lady Wisdom, a personage
described in the Hebrew Bible (the Old Testament) as the first companion or the
feminine face of God.
Many
Black Madonnas were not Christian images at all, but were venerated thousands of
years prior to contact with the Christian faith.
The Black Madonna images in European pilgrimage shrines are a matter of some
controversy. Throughout Europe there are over 500 examples of these black images
and, while anathema to the orthodox church, they are widely venerated as having
esoteric, magical and wonder-working powers.
THE FRENCH BLACK VIRGINS
Whoever the
enigmatic Black Virgin may be, she holds a powerful attraction for her millions
of devotees around the world. Her sacred sites stand on highly charged earth
energy centres, enhanced by megalithic ley-lines and sacred architecture.
From ancient times
to the present, people have undertaken pilgrimages to her shrines as a way to
explore her mysteries and to enable her to do her miraculous work of healing,
transformation and inspiration.
France has more
than 300 Black Virgin places of worship and over 150 Black Virgin statues still
in existence.
More Black Madonna Articles and Info here:
The
Black Madonna of Loreto by Katherine Hittard
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