The icon of Santa Maria Maggiore, Rome: an image and its afterlife

Focussing on the icon of the church of Santa Maria Maggiore, Rome, this article explores the re‐use, replication and documentation of a medieval image in the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries. The icon, a portrait of the Virgin and Christ attributed to the hand of St Luke the Evangelist, helped to reinforce both the Catholic cult of images and the cult of Mary, which had come under attack during the period of the Protestant Reformation. During this time, the copying and dispersion of the Roman image served various purposes: the reproductions reinforced the popularity of the original representation from Santa Maria Maggiore; the copies established political ties through diplomatic gift giving; and the replications played a significant role in the Catholic missionary programme, especially under the Jesuits. The popularity of the icon copies, encouraged by missionary zeal, miraculous occurrences, or authoritative texts, blurred the distinctions among prototype (the Virgin or Christ), holy image (the icon) and replica (the Counter‐Reformation copy). (pp. 660–672)