DONATELLO
(b. ca. 1386, Firenze, d. 1466, Firenze)

St Mary Magdalene

c. 1457
Polychrome wood, height 188 cm
Museo dell'Opera del Duomo, Florence

The sculpture was made for the Baptistery of Florence. Its restoration, which was necessary after the flood of 1966, has brought out the original polychrome, accentuating the ascetic physicality of the sculpture.

Vasari wrote about the statue: "a finely executed and impressive work. She is portrayed as wasted away by her fastings and abstinence, and Donatello's expert knowledge of anatomy is demonstrated by the perfect accuracy of every part of the figure."




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