The mariology of St. Bonaventure as a source of inspiration in Italian late medieval iconography

The central hypothesis of this paper raises the possibility that the mariology of St. Bonaventure maybe could have exercised substantial, direct influence on several of the most significant Marian iconographic themes in Italian art of the late Middle Ages. After a brief biographical sketch to highlight the prominent position of the saint as a master of Scholastic, prestigious writer, the highest authority of the Franciscan Order and accredited Doctor of the Church, the author of this paper presents the thesis developed by St. Bonaventure in each one of his many "Mariological Discourses" before analyzing a set of pictorial images representing various Marian iconographic themes in which we could detect the probable influence of bonaventurian mariology.