"Our Lady of Sorrows"
Anonymous Artist

This is classic Mid-Century Catholic art. It's illustrative, with a softness to the figure and the typical vague light source. These pictures were and are devotional art. They are somewhat idealized and out of nature so you don't get snagged on realism, but rather can go beyond this world. The style was evolved from the St. Sulpice style developed by the French holy card publishers of the late 19th Century. For decades of the early and mid 20th Century, this was _the_ style of Catholic art.

This is a particularly lovely example of that style. The seven swords piercing Mary's immaculate heart are the Seven Sorrows of Mary. It comes from the scripture, Luke 2:35, "And a sword will pierce your own heart too, so the thoughts of many will be revealed."

The Seven Sorrows are
The First Sorrow: The Prophecy of Simeon and Anna
The Second Sorrow: The Flight into Egypt.
The Third Sorrow: The Loss of the Child Jesus.
The Fourth Sorrow: The Condemnation of Jesus.
The Fifth Sorrow: The Crucifixion of Jesus.
The Sixth Sorrow: The Retrieval of Jesus' Body.
The Seventh Sorrow: The Burial of Jesus.

You can find some beautiful devotions online to pray the Seven Sorrows with this picture as a meditation. Sorrow is the counterpoint to joy; it is a real and unavoidable part of our Salvation.

** IMPORTANT ** There is about an inch-and-a-third of white space around the picture in the 8.5x11 size, so the IMAGE IS SMALLEER THAN THE PAPER! For 11x14, the border is about 1.6 inches, and for 5x7, the border is about .5 inch. This is because the rectangle of the painting has a different ratio than than rectangles of the various paper sizes.

- Acid-free paper
- Archival pigments, rated to last for generations.
- Cardboard backer
- Above story of the art
- Enclosed in a tight-fitting, crystal clear bag.

Thanks for your interest!
Sue & John

"In order to communicate the message entrusted to her by Christ, the Church needs art." ~ St. Pope John Paul II

Original image is out-of-copyright. Descriptive text and image alterations (hence the whole new image) © by Sue Kouma Johnson - Classic Catholic Art.