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The Adoration of the Magi

Gerard David Netherlandish
ca. 1520
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 537
First established in Bruges, Gerard David also joined the painter’s guild in Antwerp in 1515, where his compositions and motifs soon began to circulate. This excellently preserved panel is strongly indebted to David’s work. The extravagantly dressed onlookers, however, are a pure invention of Antwerp art, as is the landscape view with travelers carrying goods for trade. Due to Antwerp’s status as the mercantile center for Northern Europe, scenes of the Adoration of the Magi were particularly popular in the city. They served not only a devotional use, but could also be associated with the travel of foreign goods.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: The Adoration of the Magi
  • Artist: Gerard David (Netherlandish, Oudewater ca. 1455–1523 Bruges) and Workshop
  • Date: ca. 1520
  • Medium: Oil on wood
  • Dimensions: Overall 27 3/4 x 28 7/8 in. (70.5 x 73.3 cm); painted surface 27 1/2 x 28 3/8 in. (69.2 x 72.1 cm)
  • Classification: Paintings
  • Credit Line: The Jack and Belle Linsky Collection, 1982
  • Object Number: 1982.60.17
  • Curatorial Department: European Paintings

More Artwork

More Artwork
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Studies of ten (?) heads and two ears (recto); Studies of three figures and a head (verso), Gerard David Netherlandish, Metalpoint on prepared paper; verso: black chalk
Studies of ten (?) heads and two ears (recto); Studies of three figures and a head (verso)
Gerard David
ca. 1498
Virgin and Child, Gerard David Netherlandish, Oil on oak panel, Netherlandish
Virgin and Child
Gerard David
1490–1523
The Annunciation, Gerard David Netherlandish, Tempera on parchment
The Annunciation
Gerard David
ca. 1510
Holy Face, Gerard David Netherlandish, Tempera and gold leaf on parchment that has been trimmed and laid down on thin walnut
Holy Face
Gerard David
ca. 1485–90
Archangel Gabriel; The Virgin Annunciate, Gerard David Netherlandish, Oil on oak panel
Archangel Gabriel; The Virgin Annunciate
Gerard David
ca. 1510

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