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Description: | The triptych, of which this panel is the left wing, would have been placed upon a small side altar as an aid to piety and a source of instruction. For most of the year, it would have been shown open displaying the Nativity, Adoration of the Magi and Presentation which correspond to the three feasts of Christ's infancy in the church year, Christmas, Epiphany and Candlemas. During Lent, however, the wings would have been closed to shown the Annunciation in grisaille (monochrome) on the exterior. In this scene of the Nativity Mary kneels in adoration at the manger which is shown in the form of an altar. She is accompanied by the ox and ass in fulfilment of the prophecy of Isaiah 1.3, 'the ox knoweth his owner, and the ass his master's crib.' In the background is a ruined archway, seen again in the centre panel, representing the law of the synagogue or Old Testament giving way to the New. In the foreground, the dandelion, the 'bitter herb' of Christ's suffering, sprouts from the ruins. It has been suggested that the Shepherd Boy could represent a donor. Ysenbrandt spent his working life in Bruges, at that time an important artistic centre. He continued the tradition of the great Bruges painters, Hans Memling (1430/5-94) and Gerard David (d. 1523). Little is known about his life and he left no known signed works, but a number of paintings, including this piece, have been attributed to him on the basis of style alone. | Subjects: | religion (Nativity) | Source: | Vads | Creator: | Artist: Ysenbrandt, Adrien (Flemish painter, ca. 1500-before 1551) Æ | Identifier: | http://www.vads.ac.uk/large.php?uid=9174... | Go to resource |
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