Altarpiece for the Chapel of Our Lady of Sorrows in the Parish Church of S André in the town of Mafra

18th century
drawing on paper, watercolour
MOP - Archive (replica)

Captions accompanying the drawing (spelling updated):
1. The mysterious name of Mary, full of labour, resting on the wings of the seraphim, tells of the great and glorious power that the Lady, in the most incredible helplessness of her Solitude, had over her enemies.

2. The laurel festoons on the Frontispiece and the oak festoons representing the seraphim's meetings signify the virtuous constancy with which the Lady witnessed the torments of Jesus Christ in the Cal[va]r[y].

3. The palm leaves signify the Lady's victory as a strong woman.

4. The table between the stool and the niche, garnished with a laurel of flowers and hyacinths linking the sword, spear and green cane, signifies the pained contemplation of the martyrdoms suffered by Christ or the sorrows of the Lady herself.

5. Explanation: Every figure you see bathed in yellow shows what needs to be done again; the rest is the existing figure that needs to be perfected in lime with paint, etc.