 Mary 's body becomes the tabernacle holding the Host made flesh . She becomes an object of devotion , a " monstrance containing the Host " . Her full belly and the presence of the dove indicate the moment of Incarnation has occurred . Viewers would have been reminded of the Crucifixion and Lamentation with the swoon , " thus anticipating Christ 's sacrifice for the salvation of mankind at the moment of his conception . " According to theologians , Mary stood with dignity at the Crucifixion of Jesus , but in 15th @-@ century art she is depicted swooning , according to Jolly , " in agony at the sight of her dying son … assuming the pose of a mother in the throes of the pain of childbirth " . At the cross she felt the pain of his death ; pain which at his birth she had not experienced . 
