Italian school; 17th century.

Italian school; 17th century.
"Penitent Magdalene".
Oil on canvas. Relined.
Measurements: 51,5 x 65,5 cm; 64 x 78,5 cm (frame).
Devotional image that shows us Mary Magdalene during her penitence in the desert, dressed with a blue tunic and leaning with one of her hands on a skull, usual in her iconography. The scene takes place in a landscape open to a blue sky that adds luminosity to a theme that is generally treated with great dramatic light, enveloping the protagonist in darkness. It is worth noting that the rest of the palette that makes up the scene is also gentler, as can be seen in the tunic and cloak, as well as in her golden hair.
While Eastern Christianity particularly honours Mary Magdalene for her closeness to Jesus, considering her to be "equal to the apostles", in the West the idea developed, based on her identification with other women in the Gospels, that before meeting Jesus she had been a prostitute. Hence the later legend that she spent the rest of her life as a penitent in the desert, mortifying her flesh. In art, she was most often depicted in this way, especially in the 17th century, a time when Catholic societies were particularly fascinated by the lives of mystics and saints who lived in solitude in the wilderness, dedicated to prayer and penance. Mary Magdalene is mentioned in the New Testament as a distinguished disciple of Christ. According to the Gospels, she housed and provided materially for Jesus and his disciples during their stay in Galilee, and was present at the Crucifixion. She was a witness to the Resurrection, as well as the one in charge of transmitting the news to the apostles. She is also identified with the woman who anointed the feet of Jesus with perfumes before his arrival in Jerusalem, which is why her main iconographic attribute is a knob of essences, like the one shown here.