Very large, framed oil-on-canvas religious painting by Alphonse Carmagnolle 50½ x 39¾"

Dating from the late nineteenth to early twentieth century, a stunning, sizeable Napoleon III-style religious oil-on-canvas scene painted and signed Alphonse Carmagnolle in a lovely gilded frame. The scene depicts Marie Salomé and Marie Jacobé, arriving in Provençal land (according to legend), in the Camargue, surrounded by cherubs above. This is why the city is now called Saintes Maries de la mer; it derives from a medieval tradition that after Jesus' Resurrection, these Marys escaped the Christian persecution in Judaea and travelled across the sea by boat, living in the Camargue the rest of their lives and helping to bring Christianity to France.

Alphonse Carmagnolle was a Provençal painter frequently commissioned by churches who practiced in the Aix-en-Provence area. Four of his canvas works are in the church of Saint Jacques de Mouriès. This canvas has undergone restorations. Note there is a bit of canvas showing where the oil has rubbed off, as photographed. Sources credit: Wikipedia.