, 1340–1350 church, Rome. Early Christian art shows Mary in an elevated position. She carries her divine son in her hands, or holds him. The earliest known Roman depiction of
Santa Maria Regina depicting Mary as a queen dates to the 6th century and is found in the modest church of
Santa Maria Antiqua built in the 5th century in the
Forum Romanum. Here Mary is unequivocally depicted as an empress. As one of the earliest
Catholic Marian churches, this church was used by
Pope John VII in the early 8th century as the
see of the bishop of Rome. Also in the 8th century, the
Second Council of Nicaea decreed that such pictures of Mary should be venerated.
Evangelical Lutheranism holds Mary in high esteem churches and
Lutheran art has been made in her honour. The façade of
Saint Mary's Church in
Berlin is "crowned by a wooden sculpture of the Virgin with child, standing on a half moon, with crown and sceptre, thus depicting Mary as
Regina Coeli, as Queen of Heaven." In contrast, in the early 16th century,
Reformed leaders began to discourage
Marian art, and some like
Calvin or
Zwingli even encouraged its destruction. But after the
Council of Trent in the mid-16th century confirmed the veneration of
Marian paintings for Catholics, Mary was often painted as a Madonna with crown, surrounded by stars, standing on top of the world or the partly visible moon. These depictions occur in Evangelical Lutheranism as well, as with Saint Mary's Church in Berlin. After the victory against the Turks at
Lepanto, Mary is depicted as the Queen of Victory, sometimes wearing the crown of the Habsburg empire. National interpretations existed in France as well, where
Jean Fouquet painted the Queen of Heaven in 1450 with the face of the mistress of King
Charles VII. Statues and pictures of Mary were crowned by kings in
Poland, France,
Bavaria,
Hungary and Austria, sometimes apparently using crowns previously worn by earthly monarchs. A surviving small crown presented by
Margaret of York seems to have been that worn by her at her wedding to
Charles the Bold in 1463. A recent coronation was that of the picture of the
Salus Populi Romani in 1954 by
Pius XII. The veneration of Mary as queen continues into the 21st century, but artistic expressions do not have the leading role as in previous times. Artworks, including paintings, mosaics and carvings of the coronation of Mary as Queen of Heaven, became increasingly popular from the 13th century onward. Works follow a set pattern, showing Mary kneeling in the
heavenly court, and being crowned either by Jesus alone, or else by Jesus and God the Father together, with the Holy Spirit, usually in the form of a dove, completing the
Trinity. The Coronation of Mary is almost entirely a theme of
Western Christian art. In the
Eastern Orthodox Church, although Mary is often shown wearing a crown, the coronation itself never became an accepted artistic subject. == Gallery of art ==