BLACK MADONNA

BLACK MADONNA AND CHILD

Egyptian goddesses Isis, the Mother of Horus

Examples of the Black Madonna can be found both in Catholic and Orthodox countries. The paintings are usually icons, which are Byzantine in origin or style, some of which were produced in 13th- or 14th-century Italy. Other examples from the Middle East, Caucasus, or Africa, mainly Egypt and Ethiopia, are even older. The origins of the Black Madonna are mysterious. For many years speculation arose that the coloring of the Black Madonna was due to the accumulated soot from candles burned near the images. The Black Madonna of Europe has been associated with pre-Christian earth goddesses and Egyptian goddesses like Isis, the Mother of Horus.

 Today the meaning of the Black Madonna is linked to pre-Christian ideas and religions. Since the Madonna and Child resemble ancient Egyptian depictions of Isis and Horus, it is possible that the dark skin of the Black Madonna is a reference to the Egyptian origin of the image. Dark-skinned Madonna may also be based on other pre-Christian goddess figures; some Black Madonna shrines are located at the former sites of pagan shrines to goddesses such as Diana. When the Crusaders returned from the Islamic world in the 13th century, they brought back not only a new appreciation of intricate design but also a new respect for the meaning of Isis, the Egyptian goddess whose blackness was associated with the wisdom and life force of matter – the body of the Great Mother. One theory on the origin of some of the effigies points to a verse in The Song of Solomon (1:5), in which a woman (not Mary) refers to herself as being 'black' or 'dark' (depending on the version). It seems to me that this idea has been retrofitted to the Black Madonna, In many ways, Madona and Child was actually a pagan ideal of fertility. Our ancestors could not give up our goddesses. They found a way to keep the traditions alive, despite the concerted efforts of the Church for over 2000 years to destroy and tarnish them. 

8th century 

Montserrat Black Madonna

Stone Isis Nursing Horus

Roman Isis

African Fertility figure

In ancient Egypt, the Great Mother was depicted as a woman or a crow, because crows have very strong family links and are monogamous. Because of this, in ancient Egypt, they were symbols of faithful love. 

Black Madonna and Child, Etching 2013, Larry Vienneau