Madonna of Humility

Madonna of humility refers to artistic portrayals of the Virgin Mary which depict her as a Madonna sitting on the ground, or sitting upon a low cushion. She may be holding the Child Jesus in her lap. The term Virgin of humility is also used to refer to this style of depiction.

Upon the election of Pope Francis in 2013, Russian Orthodox Bishop Hilarion Alfeyev gifted an icon of Our Lady of Humility, which the Roman Pontiff accepted; then donated to Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI during their farewell meeting at Castel Gandolfo.

Humility was a virtue extolled by Saint Francis of Assisi, and this style of image was a product of Franciscan piety, first developed by them for contemplation; the word humility, from the Latin humus, meaning earth or ground.

The earliest known painting of this type dates to 1346 and is at the Museo Nazionale in Palermo, Italy. It represents a Madonna seated on a small cushion just above the ground. The Child Jesus that she holds partially looks at the viewer. The painting bears the inscription Nostra Domina de Humiltate,with the low cushion intended to express her humility. This painting in Palermo is, however, of a somewhat mediocre quality and was perhaps based on a work of Simone Martini. A similar painting in the Gemäldegalerie, Berlin, and both paintings were probably based on a Madonna of humility by Martini. A Virgin of humility fresco by Simone Martini survives in the Palais des Papes in Avignon, France.

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