Over the past two thousand years, the mother of Jesus has taken on countless guises that tell the story of the societies that venerate her. Episode 2: As the cult of the mother of Jesus intensifies, Mary becomes a leader of armies and a politician calling for change. But with the reformation, she also becomes a point of contention between Catholics and Protestants.

No woman has been depicted as often as the mother of Jesus, over the past 2,000 years. What do the many portraits of Mary created over the centuries say about the times of the artists? And what does Mary mean to people of the past and present?