After Il Cigoli, 19th century

Spanish school of the 19th century. After "IL CIGOLI"; LUDOVICO CARDI (Florence, 1559-1613).
"Penitent Magdalene."
Oil on canvas.
Measurements: 81 x 65 cm; 102 x 85 cm (frame).

The canvas in tender is a faithful copy of the Magdalene Penitent made by the Italian painter Ludovico Cardi, called Il Cigoli, around 1605, now preserved in the Pitti Palace in Florence. It depicts Mary Magdalene praying inside a cave, before the Holy Scriptures, the skull and a crucifix, raising her gaze towards the divine light that enters the room from the upper left corner. The space of the cave opens to the background, to a landscape. The ointment rests in the lower left corner of the composition. Formally, the monumental and sculptural figure responds to the Italian art of the 17th century. On the other hand, the lighting is theatrical, characteristic of the baroque.
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 of 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, so her main iconographic attribute is a knob of essences, like the one shown here. In solitary, Mary Magdalene is usually represented as we see here, doing penance in the desert, repentant of her past sins, meditating on the Holy Scriptures. The story of this saint serves as an example of Christ's forgiveness, and conveys the message of the possibility of redemption of the soul through repentance and faith.