Image Details

Scala/Art Resource, New York, NY

Jesus appears to Mary Magdalene in Noli me Tangere (Do Not Touch Me), one of the frescoes that Fra Angelico (c. 1400–1455) painted in the monks’ cells in the Monastery of San Marco, in Florence, Italy. The event illustrated here was Jesus’ first post-resurrection appearance according to John 20:14–18 and Mark 16:9. When he revealed himself to Mary, Jesus cautioned, “Do not touch me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to my brethren and say to them, I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God” (John 20:17). That Jesus chooses to appear first to Mary Magdalene and entrusts her with this important message shows that she must have held a special place among his followers.