Italian, Florentine, 'The Holy Family with Angels', probably 1475-1500
About the work
Overview
The Christ Child lies on a bundle of straw before his mother, the Virgin Mary, on a grassy patch in the foreground of this picture, his head supported by a kneeling angel. Making direct eye contact with the viewer, he suckles his index finger in a gesture that may have been understood as a kiss of peace. The Virgin, her hands joined, prays towards her son, while her husband Joseph rests on a saddle and holds a staff in his left hand. Behind him rise the ruins of an ancient building – a distant landscape with little buildings can be seen through its arches.
This painting may have been made by the Florentine painters Agnolo di Domenico del Mazziere and his brother Donnino, who specialised in the production of devotional paintings in Florence in the decades around 1500. Its circular shape was very popular at the time.
Key facts
Details
- Full title
- The Holy Family with Angels
- Artist
- Italian, Florentine
- Date made
- probably 1475-1500
- Medium and support
- egg tempera on wood
- Dimensions
- 126 × 126 cm
- Acquisition credit
- Salting Bequest, 1910
- Inventory number
- NG2492
- Location
- Not on display
- Collection
- Main Collection
- Previous owners
Provenance
Additional information
Text extracted from the ‘Provenance’ section of the catalogue entry in Martin Davies, ‘National Gallery Catalogues: The Earlier Italian Schools’, London 1986; for further information, see the full catalogue entry.
Bibliography
-
1951Davies, Martin, National Gallery Catalogues: The Earlier Italian Schools, London 1951
-
1986Davies, Martin, National Gallery Catalogues: The Earlier Italian Schools, revised edn, London 1986
-
2001
C. Baker and T. Henry, The National Gallery: Complete Illustrated Catalogue, London 2001
About this record
If you know more about this painting or have spotted an error, please contact us. Please note that exhibition histories are listed from 2009 onwards. Bibliographies may not be complete; more comprehensive information is available in the National Gallery Library.