The Adoration of the Magi (Geertgen tot Sint Jans)

The Adoration of the Magi
An oil painting of the Adoration of the Magi, set near ruins in a fantasy landscape
Artist Geertgen tot Sint Jans
Year Circa 1480–1485
Medium Oil on wood
Dimensions 91.6 cm × 71.8 cm (36.1 in × 28.3 in)
Location Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam

The Adoration of the Magi is a circa 1480-1485 oil on panel painting of the Adoration of the Magi by the Renaissance artist Geertgen tot Sint Jans in the collection of the Rijksmuseum.[1]

Painting

The Adoration of the Magi shows the three magi bearing gifts. In the background the retinue of each of the three magi can be seen.[2] The magi themselves are shown twice, once in the foreground and again in the background, arriving with their retinue from Africa, Europe and Asia. X-ray examination of the underdrawing shows that originally the European retinue of Caspar originally had him riding a horse and this was later changed to a dromedary.

Provenance

This painting is one of three paintings of the Adoration of the Magi by Geertgen that have been attributed to him based on stylistic similarities.[3] The provenance of this painting only goes back to its purchase in 1904. Together with the other two versions, it is based on work by Hugo van der Goes in Berlin.[2]

References

  1. ↑ painting record in the RKD
  2. 1 2 Catalog entry in museum website
  3. ↑ Geertgen was hier: meesterschilder, lekenbroeder en inspirator’, exhibition catalog Geertgen tot Sint-Jans in De Vishal and Janskerk (18 September - 13 October), Haarlem, 2009
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