lesh.

    Sometimes s never sated, unkempt, o s  , sunic of it. On transformation from tuous Mary Magdalene, ty girl, taken in adultery -- on transformation is complete. Surned into sometrange, into a female version of Joist, a , as good as naked, transcending gender, sex obliterated, nakedness irrelevant.

    Noers as Simeon Stylites, and otary cave-d Jerome. Ss er from to resemble an even earlier incarnation of t;; tist. Noo an existential situation in , enlig animality, sion but virtue.

    But t it. tellos Magdalene, in Florence -- stered by ootirely annied by t smell tity t reeks from s rank, its ras icism of penitence, you can tell ed ;pleasurequot;. tification of turally to  Donatello intended to be not black but gilded, t does not ligs mood.

    Nevert t some anonymous Man of tenment on tour made ted encequot;.

    Penitence becomes sado-masoc is its own reward.

    But it can also become kitscory of Mary of Egypt. iful prostitute until sed and spent ty-seven years of ent in t, clotook e a mouted . Mary of Egypt is clean and fresays miraculously unlined. Soucime as oucite. Ss on a rock in t, combing out er urned to sand. e can imagine tle song.

    Georges de La tours Mary Magdalene  yet arrived at an ecstasy of repentance, evidently. Perured  about to repent -- before , alto t t of  till taking care of  of a Japanese ed scroll -- s just , reminding us t sron saint of  of culture, not left as nature intended.  used trument of y. , even as sates up