Raphael, Marriage of the Virgin, 1504

Self-contained and certain, Mary’s marriage to Joseph by Raphael takes symmetry to new levels. Everything is crisp. The lines, the vanishing point dead center, the height of the wedding party, and the social event they depict, all collaborate in an appropriate composition with a clean border. Pregnant and a virgin, Mary’s depiction in a wedding scene represents the social stigma of Raphael’s time...and our time. A pregnant woman should be wed. Surrounded with decoration, the work itself does not send the eye beyond. All that is to be seen is seen, very rare in a biblical painting, especially one with an accompanying narrative.

Not pictured in white, though the purest of the pure, Mary appears in her classic blue robes with Raphael’s added red dress, representative of the blood of Christ. The priest, most directly in line with the church, symbolizes the value of those most closely related to God. Her left hand is placed on her pregnant stomach and right hand accepting her ring. Mary’s dual commitments are represented: one to bear the Son of God, and one to her new husband. Raphael’s signature in the Church also adds to the symmetry of the piece, refusing to make one side heavier with significance. Mary and unborn Jesus, the focal point of the narrative, are balanced in importance by the Priests tilted head to the left, presenting symbolic symmetry even when visually lacking. Sharp, straight, and proper, Raphael’s work appeals to viewers and socialites through centuries.