The Nativity

Image credit: The National Gallery, London

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This scene shows the holy family – the Virgin Mary, Joseph and Jesus Christ – just after Christ’s birth in a stable. The artist has set the scene in surroundings familiar to contemporary viewers: the towers of a town that resembles fifteenth-century Tuscany are visible in the distance. On the hillside are two shepherds; one looks up towards golden rays that have appeared in the night sky. According to the Gospel of Luke, an angel appeared to them to announce Christ’s birth.

This picture comes from the predella (the lowest part) of an altarpiece made for Santi Giusto e Clemente in Faltugnano, Tuscany. Two other predella panels, both showing stories from the lives of the church’s patron saints, Giusto and Clemente, are now in the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

The National Gallery, London

London

Title

The Nativity

Date

about 1457

Medium

Egg tempera on wood

Measurements

H 21.9 x W 65.8 cm

Accession number

NG3648

Acquisition method

Presented by Sir Henry Howorth through The Art Fund in memory of Lady Howorth, 1922

Work type

Painting

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Normally on display at

The National Gallery, London

Trafalgar Square, London, Greater London WC2N 5DN England

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