Joachim and Anne Meeting at the Golden Gate

Joachim and Anne Meeting at the Golden Gate is a narrative of the parents of the Virgin Mary, Joachim and Anne meeting at the Golden Gate of Jerusalem, upon learning that she will bear a child. It is not in the New Testament, but is in the Protoevangelium of James and other apocryphal accounts; however it was tolerated by the Church. It featured in Voragine's Golden Legend (c.1260) and other popular accounts. The story was a popular subject in cycles of the Life of the Virgin in art.

Giotto di Bondone, Legend of St Joachim, Meeting at the Golden Gate, 1305, in the Scrovegni Chapel, is an early Western depiction of the scene.

Story

Benedictus Chelidonius' work describes the story of the married couple Joachim and Anne, who, though they were devoted to each other, were deeply unhappy as they were childless, which they took as a sign that they must have been rejected by God. An angel informs Anne of her conception, while at the same time asking her to meet her husband at the city gate in Jerusalem. On meeting, the couple entwine in joy. According to Chelidonius: "Overjoyed Anne threw herself into the arms of her husband; together they rejoiced about the honour that was to be granted them in the form of a child. For they knew from the heavenly messenger that the child would be a Queen, powerful on heaven and on earth".[1] In traditional depictions of the occasion, the pair embrace, but don't kiss.[2]

Theological implications

The church had developed the doctrine that the Virgin Mary was, uniquely, born without original sin; this is known as the doctrine of the Immaculate Conception (which refers to the conception of Mary, not that of Jesus). In the Middle Ages the doctrine remained controversial, opposed by St Thomas Aquinas and his Dominican Order, but supported by Duns Scotus and his Franciscan Order. It was formally established as dogma in 1854, by Pope Pius IX.[3]

This scene represented the conception of Mary, and was an early scene in the many cycles of the Life of the Virgin, the counterpart of the Annunciation showing the conception of Jesus. To some medieval viewers, the kiss was a literal representation of the moment of Mary's conception, while for others it was a symbolic representation. The main figures may be accompanied, usually Anne with women and Joachim with shepherds. The Archangel Gabriel, always shown in Annunciations, may appear here also.[4] Sometimes other saints are included.

The 14th and 15th centuries were the heyday of depictions. Gradually more allegorical depictions of the Immaculate Conception, featuring an adult Mary, replaced this scene in representing the doctrine.[5]

References
  1. Nurnberg (1983), Ilus. 59.
  2. Lubbock, Tom. "The Meeting at the Golden Gate (1305)". The Independent (UK), 16 February 2007. Retrieved on 14 October 2007.
  3. Hall, 326
  4. Hall, 170-171
  5. Hall, 171

Sources
  • Hall, James, Hall's Dictionary of Subjects and Symbols in Art, 1996 (2nd edn.), John Murray, ISBN 0719541476
  • Kurth, Dr. Willi. "The complete woodcuts of Albrecht Durer". New York: Arden Book Co, 1935.
  • Nurnberg, Verlag Hans Carl. "Dürer in Dublin: Engravings and woodcuts of Albrecht Dürer". Chester Beatty Libraery, 1983.
  • Strauss, Walter L. "Albrecht Durer Woodcuts and Woodblocks". The Burlington Magazine, Vol. 124, No. 955, October, 1982. pp. 638–639.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.