structure of Cimabue's Madonna. Moreover, this paper seeks to prove the following thesis: Fundamentally, the viewer can treat Cimabue's Madonna as a representation of the hierarchy of divinity over humanity.

The image is structured in many respects in a highly traditional format. The Madonna and child occupy center stage of the image's structure. Their centrality is a common thematic element in nearly every single image of the Madonna and child that has ever been created. In this sense, Cimabue's Madonna is somewhat derivative. However, the centrality of the Madonna and child is yet another means of expressing their primacy in the image at large. This helps to remind the viewer that the Virgin Mary and baby Jesus are two of the most important figures from western Catholicism and Christianity which were ever created. By allowing them to occupy the most important place within the frame, Cimabue is reasserting their overall...
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