Elevation of the Magdalen
Painting by Antonio del Pollaiuolo
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The Elevation of the Magdalen or Mystic Communion is a painting of c. 1460 by Antonio del Pollaiuolo[1] in the Museo della Pala del Pollaiolo at Staggia Senese, now a district of the town of Poggibonsi in the Province of Siena, Italy. It shows Saint Mary Magdalene in penitence and prayer in the desert, supported by four angels and with a fifth bringing her a host.
| Elevation of the Magdalen | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Artist | Antonio del Pollaiuolo |
| Year | c. 1460 |
| Medium | Oil and tempera on panel |
| Dimensions | 209.5 cm × 166.2 cm (82.5 in × 65.4 in) |
| Location | |
The work was originally commissioned as an altarpiece for the parish church of Santa Maria Assunta in Staggia by Bindo Grazzini, a notary active in Florence but originally from Staggia. Grazzini was also a particular devotee of the Magdalen, to whom he dedicated a chapel in Staggia's parish church and a small hospital in his native area. Long lost, the panel was rediscovered in 1899 by Guido Carocci and six years later was published by Bernard Berenson.[2]
