The Adoration of the Magi

c. 1650/1656

Bartolomé Esteban Murillo

Associated Names
Bartolomé Esteban Murillo

Artist, Spanish, 1617 - 1682

The image shows several people in an indoor setting, depicted in a black and white drawing style. Most figures are shown from their midsections up, with a few kneeling individuals. A woman holding a child is central, with others around them. People wear cloaks or draped garments, with some wearing head coverings or turbans. The facial expressions and features are subtly detailed. There is a sense of focus on the child, with several figures gazing intently. The arrangement suggests an intimate or significant gathering. The background is plain, with indistinct forms hinting at space behind the figures.

Media Options

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    pen and brown ink with brown wash over red and black chalk on laid paper

  • Credit Line

    Ailsa Mellon Bruce Fund

  • Dimensions

    overall (approximate): 28 x 23.1 cm (11 x 9 1/8 in.)

  • Accession Number

    1978.105.1

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

J.I. de Espinosa y Tello de Guzmán, 3rd Conde del Aguila [c. 1760-1808]; Julian Williams, British vice-consul, Seville; Frank Hall Standish, Seville [1799-1840]; bequeathed 1841 to Louis Philippe; (his sale, Paris, 6 December 1852, no. 593); (sale, Versailles, J. P. Chapelle 1 March 1970, no. 132); Jacques Petit-Horry, Paris; purchased by NGA, 1978.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

1983

  • Graphics Survey Exhibition, National Gallery of Art, Washington D.C., February 1983.

2012

  • Bartolomé Esteban Murillo (1617-1682). Dibujos, Fundación Botín, Santander, 2012, cat. no. 17.

Bibliography

1976

  • Brown, Jonathan. Murillo and His Drawings. Princeton, 1976: 7.

Inscriptions

recto: none; verso: at lower right in later hand in graphite: Murillo c LXIII ancien A. Larouse

Watermarks

none

Wikidata ID

Q64537150

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