Madonna with the Swaddled Infant

The Madonna with the swaddled infant is one of the most famous paints done by the renowned artist Albrecht Durer. This particular artwork depicts a lady who is sited holding an infant in her arms. Her face looks towards the child with a calm and loving facial expression that closely resembles that of a mother admiring her child.

A halo is painted behind the woman's head as well as that of the child giving the indication that both of them are divine beings according to Christian teachings. The child's eyes are closed and his entire body is wrapped in clothes leaving only the head in a form of infant care used during the ancient days known as swaddling. The background of the image depicts a seaside shore and the seat where the lady is sited is cushioned. The bottom left has a square placard which is engraved with the year the painting was done.

The painting was painted in the year 1520 and the general theme around it is the basic principle of salvation on which Christianity is founded. The child is presumed to be baby Jesus who was born to Virgin Mary through the power of holy spirit to brig salvation to the world. From careful observation of the objects in the painting, it is very clear that the artist paid lots of detail when painting the hands of the woman and the head of the child. The facial expressions on both faces clearly bring out the peaceful emotion in line with the doctrine of salvation that encourages compassion with the suffering of Christ.

Albrecht Durer also painted more paintings at around the same period he did the Madonna with the swaddled infant. Most of the paintings were themed around the doctrines of early Christianity. Some of his other the well known works include "The Madonna Crowned by an Angel", "The Knight, Death, and the Devil", and "The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, Death, Famine, Pestilence and War". Currently the original painting resides in the Metropolitan Museum of Art located in Manhattan, New York City, United States of America. The original art piece is in the form of engraving on paper. The painting comes in black and white colors only since those were the only colors available at the time it was originally painted. Various artists have recreated the painting on other surfaces including digitizing the art into modern forms that can be reproduced on print and shared over the internet.