
This one is in the church at Saint-Genou, where the building that remains is just a small part of a once much bigger church that was at the center of a Benedictine abbey. The abbey was founded in the year 828 but attacked and demolished by the Normans twice in the 800s and 900s. Construction on a "new" church was started in 994 and completed in 1066. The Saint-Genou monastery went into decline in the 1500s. Rabelais was a regular visitor, and Saint-Genou is mentioned in his works.
The name Genou in Saint-Genou is not related to the French word for "knee" except by phonetic coincidence.
I truly love this artwork. There is a great dignity in the Mother and the Child. It might not inspire devotion but I feel much respect for both. They look very special.
ReplyDelete