Francesco Francia.—A Pietà.
The dogma of the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin was much in favor with the Spanish Church before its confirmation by the bull of Pope Paul V. in 1617, which was welcomed in Seville, not only by the most solemn religious services, but also by the booming of cannon, and the celebration of bull-fights, tournaments, and banquets. Spain and all its colonies were placed under the protection of the Immaculate Conception. Even now, almost three centuries after this event, it is not unusual for Spaniards to use the salute, “Ave Maria purissima!” the response being, “Sin peccado concepida!”
Not long after the publication of the bull, Pacheco laid down rules for the representation of this subject in Art, which have been conscientiously followed. The Virgin is very young, her hair golden, her robe white, and her mantle blue. The angels near her bear roses, lilies, and palms. She stands on the moon, wears the starry crown, and the vanquished dragon is beneath her. As the Franciscans were always enthusiastically devoted to this dogma, it was usual to represent the girdle of the Virgin by the cord of the Franciscans.
Murillo, the painter of this subject par excellence, was not strictly bound by Pacheco’s rules. He adhered to the colors prescribed for the drapery; he varied the tint of the hair, and often was not careful to represent the cord of St. Francis. He never omitted the moon, but it was sometimes full rather than in the crescent, and he pointed the horns upward, while Pacheco directed them to point downward; and he usually omitted the starry crown. But so satisfactory were Murillo’s Immaculate Conceptions that he was never accused of being unorthodox.
Murillo.—The Immaculate Conception.