Praying the Regina Coeli with Art: This Week's Image

During the Easter season, we traditionally replace the Angelus prayer with the Regina Coeli. And so Call to Prayer: The Angelus Project will feature images of the Coronation of the Virgin in place of the usual Annunciation.

Dr Richard Stracke of the Christian Iconography website presents this Coronation, from a Franciscan Monastery in Zadar, Croatia:

From the late 13th century onward it is almost always Christ who places the crown on Mary's head, but different artists found different ways to add the Father and/or the Holy Spirit. In this case, the Father expresses his blessing of the coronation by clasping the shoulders of both Christ and Mary. As usual, angels attend.    

Photographed at the monastery by Richard Stracke,
shared under Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license.

From Easter to Pentecost, pray the Regina Coeli (in place of the Angelus) three times a day: morning, noon and evening.

Queen of Heaven, rejoice, Alleluia!
R. For he whom you deserved to bear, Alleluia!
Has risen as he said, Alleluia!
R. Pray for us to God, Alleluia! 

Rejoice and be glad, O Virgin Mary, Alleluia!
For the Lord has truly risen, Alleluia!

Let us pray:
O God, who gave joy to the world through the resurrection of your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ,
grant, we beseech thee, that through the intercession of his Mother, the Virgin Mary,
we may obtain the joys of everlasting life.
Through the same Christ our Lord. Amen.

Praying the Regina Coeli with Art: This Week's Image

During the Easter season, we traditionally replace the Angelus prayer with the Regina Coeli. And so Call to Prayer: The Angelus Project will feature images of the Coronation of the Virgin in place of the usual Annunciation.

This week's image is from the Church of the Assumption, Windsor, Ontario (Canada) and was shared by Dr Richard Stracke on his Christian Iconography website.

Photographed at the church by Richard Stracke,
shared under Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license. 

From Easter to Pentecost, pray the Regina Coeli (in place of the Angelus) three times a day: morning, noon and evening.

Queen of Heaven, rejoice, Alleluia!
R. For he whom you deserved to bear, Alleluia!
Has risen as he said, Alleluia!
R. Pray for us to God, Alleluia! 

Rejoice and be glad, O Virgin Mary, Alleluia!
For the Lord has truly risen, Alleluia!

Let us pray:
O God, who gave joy to the world through the resurrection of your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ,
grant, we beseech thee, that through the intercession of his Mother, the Virgin Mary,
we may obtain the joys of everlasting life.
Through the same Christ our Lord. Amen.

Praying the Regina Coeli with Art: This Week's Image

During the Easter season, we traditionally replace the Angelus prayer with the Regina Coeli. And so Call to Prayer: The Angelus Project will feature images of the Coronation of the Virgin in place of the usual Annunciation.

This first Coronation is from a 15th century altarpiece in an Austrian parish church. It was photographed by Dr Richard Stracke of the Christian Iconography website who comments: 

In most Coronations only the Son does the honors. In the rarer examples that involve the entire Trinity, it is rarer still to portray the Son and Father as identical in appearance. Some images of the 16th and 17th centuries did picture the Trinity as three identical men.
In this period and later the gesture Mary uses to express her humility can be either a crossing of the arms over the breast or "praying hands" as seen here.  

Photographed at the church by Richard Stracke,
shared under Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license.    

From Easter to Pentecost, pray the Regina Coeli (in place of the Angelus) three times a day: morning, noon and evening.

Queen of Heaven, rejoice, Alleluia!
R. For he whom you deserved to bear, Alleluia!
Has risen as he said, Alleluia!
R. Pray for us to God, Alleluia! 

Rejoice and be glad, O Virgin Mary, Alleluia!
For the Lord has truly risen, Alleluia!

Let us pray:
O God, who gave joy to the world through the resurrection of your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ,
grant, we beseech thee, that through the intercession of his Mother, the Virgin Mary,
we may obtain the joys of everlasting life.
Through the same Christ our Lord. Amen.

Praying the Angelus with Art: This Week's Image

This week's image, our last Annunciation until Ordinary Time resumes, is by the 16th century Cretan iconographer George Klontzas (who also painted the Annunciation featured on March 2). The Annunciation is featured on the outside of a triptych whose wings open up to reveal a Crucifixion with the Last Supper and the Way of the Cross to the left, and the Descent into Hell and Resurrection on the right. (A fascinatingly detailed description of the triptych can be found online.)

Klontzas Triptych, Annunciation with prophets (detail).