This tempera on a table by Sandro Botticelli is kept at the Poldi Pezzoli Museum in Milan. There are many works by Botticelli depicting the Madonna. This painting represents her and her child Jesus holding in their hands a book whose shape and content seem to be a "book of hours", which is a book for daily prayer. Hence the actual title of the painting: Madonna of the Book. It is a picture full of meanings. The child, observed and held lovingly by his mother, holds in his hand a crown of thorns and three nails, symbols of the future Passion of Christ, heralded also by the cherries. Then there are other fruits with an important symbolism: figs representing the Resurrection and the plums that represent the love between mother and child. Finally, on the dress of Mary there is a star, which recalls the comet that led the Magi to baby Jesus. The light, more than from the window, seems to come from the bodies depicted, emanating mystically in the surrounding environment as to accentuate the divine nature of the characters. This effect was accentuated by the golden highlights created by Botticelli thanks to his mastery.