Kornmarkt-Madonna

The background to this was the religious conflict between the majority Reformed Church population of Heidelberg and the Catholic Prince-Elector Charles III Philip.

Mary wears a gilt crown of rays and stars and holds a lily sceptre in her right arm.

In the Heidelberg context, the slaying of the monstrous snake was intended as an allegory for the battle against the Protestant "erroneous belief.

"[5] Other attributes of the sculpture point to various aspects of the Mary cult: the crown of rays with twelve stars and the lilies recall the Immaculate Conception.

The trampling of the snake and the crescent moon at her feet are symbols of her role as the Woman of the Apocalypse.