Penitent St. Mary Magdalene in a Landscape

In the Baroque, Mary Magdalene, the penitent sinner, was linked to the symbols of the sacrament of reconciliation. Legends had identified her both with the sinner who anointed Jesus´s feet with ointment (L 7, 37), but also with Mary of Magdala, the participation of Christ’s passion. The penitent saint is a framework for the spiritual struggle of ascetism and penitence, the artist used to the full his original, expressively relaxed brushwork.