Maria von Engeln getragen als Siegerin über die Schlange und das Heidenthum 

Giorgio Vasari made this drawing, Maria von Engeln getragen als Siegerin über die Schlange und das Heidenthum, in the 16th century. It depicts Mary, Queen of Angels, triumphing over a serpent, or paganism. Vasari made this drawing at a time when the Catholic Church was trying to reaffirm its spiritual and political authority in the face of the rise of Protestantism. The figures in the lower register flail as they fall from grace, embodying the fear that abandoning Catholicism would lead to disorder and chaos. The drawing asks what happens to social structures when there is a shift in cultural identity and power. Mary is carried aloft by angels, a symbol of the divine support given to the Church. But what does it mean to depict victory in such a way? Here, triumph is achieved through the subjugation of others. The drawing offers us a glimpse into the anxieties of a society undergoing profound change.