Cestello Annunciation (Botticelli)

The Annunciation
Artist Sandro Botticelli
Year 1489
Medium Tempera on panel
Dimensions 150 cm × 156 cm (59 in × 61 in)
Location Uffizi, Florence

The Annunciation, also known as the Cestello Annunciation, is a tempera painting created in 1489 by the Italian Renaissance master Sandro Botticelli.[1] It is housed in the Uffizi Gallery of Florence and has been part of the collection since 1872.[2]

The picture was commissioned in May 1489 to decorate the chapel of the Florentine monastery Cestello, which is now known as Santa Maria Maddalena de'Pazzi.[2][1]

The subject of the painting is the Annunciation, in which the angel Gabriel visits the Virgin Mary to tell her that she has been divinely impregnated and will bear the Christ child. Underneath the painting on its original frame are words in Latin from St. Luke's Gospel 1:35 "The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee."

The subject of the Annunciation is common in Christian art[3][4] and has been depicted by many artists, in multiple formats, and in different time periods. In addition to the Cestello Annunciation, Botticelli also painted a 1485 Annunciation now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art[5] and a 1495-1500 version now housed in the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum.[6]

References

  1. 1 2 Montresor, Carlo (2010). Botticelli. ATS Italia.
  2. 1 2 "Annunciation". Virtual Uffizi Gallery. Retrieved February 27, 2015.
  3. Murray, Peter; Murray, Linda (1996). The Oxford Companion to Christian Art and Architecture. p. 23. ISBN 0198661657.
  4. Vassilaki, Maria (2005). Images of the Mother of God. pp. 158–159. ISBN 0754636038.
  5. "The Annunciation". The Collection Online. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Retrieved March 3, 2015.
  6. Gebhart, Emile; Charles, Victoria (2012). Botticelli. Parkstone International. ISBN 1780429959.
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