ABSTRACT
This chapter addresses expressions of Marian piety in Western Christianity with particular emphasis on the Late Middle Ages, concentrating on manifestations of Marian devotional practices as reflected in visual representations and the performance of Marian devotion. The essays are arranged in chronological order. They analyse devotional developments on both the iconographic and performative levels. The iconographic level traces the development of Marian iconography in sculpture, panel paintings, and objects such as seals, with particular emphasis on Italy, Slovenia, and Romania. It traces the growth of Marian pictorial representations in various media as related to textual representations, theological concepts, and religious literature. The chapter opens with the essay of Elisabeth Sobieczky that highlights the likely meanings of the multicolored polychromy and/or gold used for Marian sculptures. It deals with forms of Marian devotion and the conceptualization of monastic/church space in relation to liturgical productions and their devotional functions.
