The Three Magi, from an Adoration Group

Images of three men bringing gifts to the infant Jesus trace back to the earliest Christian art. At first, they appeared only as the wise men "from the east" described in the Gospels (Matt. 2:2), but the legend grew until the Magi were understood as ideal kings representing three continents and three stages of maturity: the elderly Asian king, arriving first, followed by the middle-aged European king and the youthful African king. Though often called Caspar (or Gaspar), Melchoir and Balthazar, many regional variations existed concerning their names and appearances.


The first two Magi resemble the Hapsburg emperor Maximilian I (1459–1519) and his son, Philip the Handsome (1478–1506). Thanks to coins, prints, and other widely available media, their faces would have been familiar to many viewers. But what about the third figure? His face follows conventions used to portray African kings, such as Mansa Musa of Mali (1280–c. 1337), underscoring the increased contacts with distant lands that brought new people and fresh luxuries to Europe at the end of the Middle Ages.

In 2013 the Museum had the exceptional opportunity to acquire the Virgin and Child (acc. no. 2013.1093) created with the Three Magi and reunite these sculptures, originally part of a large altarpiece that was dismantled in the early nineteenth century.