Detail of Madonna of the Magnificat 2 by Sandro Botticelli

This magnificent close-up of incredible delicacy, temporarily designated under the title “Madonna of the Magnificat*”, is a fragment of a major sacred painting produced by the famous painter Botticelli Sandro. Belonging to the Florentine Renaissance, this composition exalts the aesthetic ideal of the humanized angel, blending celestial grace with faces of purely earthly beauty. Through the attentive study of these angelic figures, the painter offers a captivating glimpse into the refinement of the period.

Three young angels with profiles of infinite grace gather tightly against one another, absorbed in the contemplation of a large open book. The central angel, shown in a profile view turned to the right, has abundant curly light-brown hair, with eyes directed fervently toward the sacred text. The angel located above him delicately rests its head on his, displaying a melancholic face with closed eyelids. The third angel, in the foreground on the left, is dressed in a dark blue tunic with a collar adorned with braids and gold-thread embroidered patterns, holding a quill in one hand and supporting the book of hours with the other. In the background, a verdant country landscape of gentle hills is sketched under a clear sky. A raking and divine light caresses their soft faces, emphasizing the roundness of their cheeks and the brilliance of their hair.

The Florentine artist demonstrates his exceptional craftsmanship here in the characterization of androgynous faces and the treatment of curly hair. His linear drawing of surgical precision and his mastery of tempera on wood give this group a sculptural presence of infinite poetry.