Lucca Madonna

This is a famous Madonna with Child by Jan van Eyck. The panel is known as the Lucca Madonna, as it once belonged to the duke of the Italian city Lucca.

Mary is on a throne, the infant at her breast. It is an intimate scene in a space clearly delimited by the walls and the roof of the throne. Linear perspective of the walls and the carpet on the floor help us focus on the center. The spectator feels like standing in the same room.

It is said that Van Eyck's wife Margaretha stood model for Mary. The lions on the throne are a reference to the throne of king Solomon, one of Jesus' predecessors as king of Israel.