Adoration of the Shepherds

Last updated

Adoration of the Shepherds by Domenico Ghirlandaio, 1485 Anbetung der Hirten.jpg
Adoration of the Shepherds by Domenico Ghirlandaio, 1485
Adoration of the Shepherds by Giorgione, 1510 Giorgione - Adoration of the Shepherds - National Gallery of Art.jpg
Adoration of the Shepherds by Giorgione, 1510
The Adoration of the Shepherds by El Greco, c. 1605-1610 El Greco (Domenikos Theotokopoulos) - The Adoration of the Shepherds (ca. 1605-10) - Metropolitan Museum of Art.jpg
The Adoration of the Shepherds by El Greco, c.1605–1610
Adoration of the Shepherds by Matthias Stom, c. 1635-1640 The Adoration of the Shepherds - Matthias Stom (Stomer) - Google Cultural Institute.jpg
Adoration of the Shepherds by Matthias Stom, c.1635–1640
Adoration of the Shepherds by Bartolome Esteban Murillo, c. 1657 Adoration of the Shepherds, Murillo (Prado Museum).jpg
Adoration of the Shepherds by Bartolomé Esteban Murillo, c.1657

The Adoration of the Shepherds is an episode in the story of Jesus's nativity in which shepherds are near witnesses to his birth in Bethlehem, arriving soon after he is actually born. It is recounted, or at least implied, in the Gospel of Luke and follows on from the annunciation to the shepherds, in which the shepherds are summoned by an angel to the scene of the birth. Like the episode preceding it, the adoration is a common subject in art, where it is often combined with the Adoration of the Magi. In such cases it is typically just referred to by the latter title.

Contents

Biblical narrative

The Adoration of the Shepherds is an episode in the nativity narrative of the Gospel of Luke. Shepherds are watching their flocks by night, apparently near Bethlehem, when an angel appears to announce the good news that "today in the City of David a Saviour has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord". [1] The angelic promise is accompanied by a sign: they will find the saviour in the form of "a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger". [2] "Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host" (the Greek word used here indicates a military formation, an army) appeared and joined the angel, singing "Glory to God in the highest heaven, and peace among those of good will". [3]

15 When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, "Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us." 16 So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the child lying in the manger.

The annunciation to the shepherds, which precedes the adoration, forms a distinct subject in Christian art and is sometimes included in a nativity scene as a peripheral feature (even though it occurs before the adoration itself), as in the 1485 scene by Domenico Ghirlandaio, where it can be seen in the upper left corner. Ghirlandaio also shows a procession of Magi about to arrive with their gifts.

Biblical commentary

Roger Baxter reflects on verse 15 ("Let us go to Bethlehem..."), writing, "Observe the prompt obedience of the shepherds, and learn thence to obey with promptitude the divine inspirations." For they came with haste. No one can see Christ slothfully," says St. Ambrose. [4]

The Venerable Bede makes a similar comment: "The shepherds hasten, for the presence of Christ must not be sought with sluggishness; and many perchance that seek Christ do not merit to find Him, because they seek Him slothfully." [5]

In art

The scene is very commonly combined with the Adoration of the Magi, which makes for a balanced composition, as the two groups often occupy opposite sides of the image space around the central figures, and represent the theological interpretation of the episode where the two groups – Jewish and gentile – represented the peoples of the world between them.[ citation needed ] This combination is first found in the 6th-century Monza ampullae made in Byzantine Palaestina Prima.

The depiction of the adoration of the shepherds as a theme distinct from that of the Magi began to appear in the western Christian world in around the 15th century. The shepherds are sometimes shown presenting simpler gifts to Jesus than those of the Magi, such as lambs. [6] In Renaissance art, drawing on classical stories of Orpheus, the shepherds are sometimes depicted with musical instruments. [7] Alternatively, it has been argued that this motif derives from a custom of playing the pipes before images of the Virgin and Child at Christmas in parts of Italy. [8] A charming but atypical miniature in the La Flora Hours in Naples shows the shepherds playing to the Christ Child, as a delighted Virgin Mary stands to one side.[ citation needed ] It became a common theme in altarpieces as well as other art forms. [6]

Many artists have depicted the subject. Famous examples include:

Christmas carols

Several well-known Christmas carols mention the Adoration of the Shepherds. Some of these do so along the lines of urging the listener to come to Bethlehem such as the "Shepherd's Pipe Carol". The modern "Calypso Carol" has the lines "Shepherds swiftly from your stupor rise / to see the Saviour of the world," and the chorus "O now carry me to Bethlehem." "Angels We Have Heard on High" says, "Come to Bethlehem and see / Him Whose birth the angels sing."

"O Come, All Ye Faithful" ("Adeste Fideles" in the Latin version) has a verse which runs:

See how the shepherds,
Summoned to His cradle,
Leaving their flocks, draw nigh to gaze;
We too will thither
Bend our joyful footsteps.

Other carols which mention the Adoration of the Shepherds include "Silent Night", "What Child Is This?", "Infant Holy, Infant Lowly", "I Wonder as I Wander", and "O Come, Little Children". The German carol "Vom Himmel hoch, da komm ich her" ("From Heaven Above to Earth I Come") contains several stanzas on the subject of following the shepherds and celebrating the newborn baby. The Czech carol "Nesem vám noviny ("Come, All Ye Shepherds", in German "Kommet, ihr Hirten") concerns the adoration of the shepherds; the middle verse of Mari Ruef Hofer's English version runs:

Hasten then, hasten to Bethlehem's stall,
There to see heaven descend to us all.
With holy feeling, there humbly kneeling,
We will adore Him, bow down before Him,
Worship the King. [9]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Domenico Ghirlandaio</span> Italian Renaissance painter from Florence (1448–1494)

Domenico di Tommaso Curradi di Doffo Bigordi, professionally known as Domenico Ghirlandaio, was an Italian Renaissance painter born in Florence. Ghirlandaio was part of the so-called "third generation" of the Florentine Renaissance, along with Verrocchio, the Pollaiolo brothers and Sandro Botticelli. Ghirlandaio led a large and efficient workshop that included his brothers Davide Ghirlandaio and Benedetto Ghirlandaio, his brother-in-law Bastiano Mainardi from San Gimignano, and later his son Ridolfo Ghirlandaio. Many apprentices passed through Ghirlandaio's workshop, including the famous Michelangelo. His particular talent lay in his ability to posit depictions of contemporary life and portraits of contemporary people within the context of religious narratives, bringing him great popularity and many large commissions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Taddeo Gaddi</span> Italian painter

Taddeo Gaddi was a medieval Italian painter and architect.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Adoration of the Magi</span> Worship of the Infant Jesus by Magi in art

The Adoration of the Magi or Adoration of the Kings or Visitation of the Wise Men is the name traditionally given to the subject in the Nativity of Jesus in art in which the three Magi, represented as kings, especially in the West, having found Jesus by following a star, lay before him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh, and worship him. It is related in the Bible by Matthew 2:11: "On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother; and they knelt down and paid him homage. Then, opening their treasure chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own country by another path".

<i>Portinari Altarpiece</i> Triptych by Hugo van der Goes

The Portinari Altarpiece or Portinari Triptych is an oil-on-wood triptych painting by the Flemish painter Hugo van der Goes, commissioned by Tommaso Portinari, representing the Adoration of the Shepherds. It measures 253 x 304 cm, and is now in the Galleria degli Uffizi in Florence, Italy. This altarpiece is filled with figures and religious symbols. Of all the late-fifteenth-century Flemish artworks, this painting is said to be the most studied.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">December 25 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)</span> Day in the Eastern Orthodox liturgical calendar

December 24 - Eastern Orthodox liturgical calendar - December 26

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sassetti Chapel</span> Chapel in Santa Trinita, Florence

The Sassetti Chapel is a chapel in the basilica of Santa Trinita in Florence, Italy. It is especially notable for its frescoes of the Stories of St. Francis, considered Domenico Ghirlandaio's masterwork.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Themes in Italian Renaissance painting</span>

This article about the development of themes in Italian Renaissance painting is an extension to the article Italian Renaissance painting, for which it provides additional pictures with commentary. The works encompassed are from Giotto in the early 14th century to Michelangelo's Last Judgement of the 1530s.

<i>Adoration of the Magi</i> (Botticelli, 1475) Painting by Sandro Botticelli

The Adoration of the Magi is a painting by the Italian Renaissance master Sandro Botticelli. Botticelli painted this piece for the altar in Gaspare di Zanobi del Lama's chapel in Santa Maria Novella around 1475. This painting depicts the Biblical story of the Three Magi following a star to find the newborn Jesus. The image of the altarpiece centers on the Virgin Mary and the newborn Jesus, with Saint Joseph behind them. Before them are the three kings who are described in the New Testament story of the Adoration of the Magi. The three kings worship the Christ Child and present him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. In addition, the Holy Family is surrounded by a group of people who came to see the child who was said to be the son of God.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Magi Chapel</span> Chapel in the Palazzo Medici Riccardi, Florence

The Magi Chapel is a chapel in the Palazzo Medici Riccardi of Florence, Italy. Its walls are almost entirely covered by a famous cycle of frescoes by the Renaissance master Benozzo Gozzoli, painted around 1459 for the Medici family, the effective rulers of Florence.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nativity of Jesus in art</span> Artistic depictions of the Nativity or birth of Jesus, celebrated at Christmas

The Nativity of Jesus has been a major subject of Christian art since the 4th century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Life of the Virgin</span> Narrative scenes of the life of Mary in art

The Life of the Virgin, showing narrative scenes from the life of Mary, the mother of Jesus, is a common subject for pictorial cycles in Christian art, often complementing, or forming part of, a cycle on the Life of Christ. In both cases the number of scenes shown varies greatly with the space available. Works may be in any medium: frescoed church walls and series of old master prints have many of the fullest cycles, but panel painting, stained glass, illuminated manuscripts, tapestries, stone sculptures and ivory carvings have many examples.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marian art in the Catholic Church</span> Iconographic depiction of Virgin Mary in Catholic Churches

Mary has been one of the major subjects of Western art for centuries. There is an enormous quantity of Marian art in the Catholic Church, covering both devotional subjects such as the Virgin and Child and a range of narrative subjects from the Life of the Virgin, often arranged in cycles. Most medieval painters, and from the Reformation to about 1800 most from Catholic countries, have produced works, including old masters such as Michelangelo and Botticelli.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Annunciation to the shepherds</span> Scene from the Nativity

The annunciation to the shepherds is an episode in the Nativity of Jesus described in the Bible in Luke 2, in which angels tell a group of shepherds about the birth of Jesus. It is a common subject of Christian art and of Christmas carols.

<i>Adoration of the Magi</i> (Ospedale degli Innocenti) Painting by Domenico Ghirlandaio

The Adoration of the Magi is a painting by the Italian Renaissance master Domenico Ghirlandaio, executed around 1485–1488 and housed in the Ospedale degli Innocenti gallery in Florence, Italy. The predella, painted by Bartolomeo di Giovanni, is in the same site.

<i>Adoration of the Magi</i> (Mostaert) Painting by Jan Mostaert

Adoration of the Magi is an oil on panel painting from the early 1520s by the Dutch Renaissance artist Jan Mostaert in the collection of the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, where in 2020 it was on display in room 0.1. The panel measures 51 cm × 36.5 cm, and the painted surface a little less at 48.5 cm × 34 cm. It is often called the Mostaert Amsterdam Adoration in art history, to distinguish it from the multitude of other paintings of the Adoration of the Magi.

<i>Adoration of the Christ Child</i> (Honthorst) Painting by Gerard van Honthorst

Adoration of the Christ Child, is a c. 1619–1621 oil on canvas painting of the Nativity by the Dutch Golden Age artist Gerard Honthorst in the collection of the Uffizi in Florence.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bob Jones University Museum & Gallery</span>

The Museum & Gallery, Inc. is currently located on the campus of Bob Jones University in Greenville, South Carolina. It was established in 1951, and focuses on sacred art, mainly European Old Master paintings, but also includes smaller collections of sculpture, furniture, architectural elements, textiles, Greek and Russian icons, and ancient artifacts. As of 2017, the museum is closed for a planned move to downtown Greenville, SC.

<i>Adoration of the Shepherds</i> (Crivelli) Painting by Carlo Crivelli

Adoration of the Shepherds is a c. 1480 tempera and gold on panel painting by Carlo Crivelli. It is now in the Museum of Fine Arts in Strasbourg, for which it was acquired in Florence by Wilhelm von Bode. Its inventory number is 171. Art historians are uncertain about the dating of the painting, and propositions have ranged from 1470 to 1491.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kommet, ihr Hirten</span>

"Kommet, ihr Hirten" is a German Christmas carol from Bohemia which was derived from a Czech carol, "Nesem vám noviny". It reflects elements from the nativity story, the annunciation to the shepherds, their walk to the manger and their Adoration, inviting to follow their example. The first line, "Kommet, ihr Hirten, ihr Männer und Fraun", addresses shepherds, men, and women.

References

  1. Edwards 2015, pp. 74–75.
  2. Edwards 2015, p. 77.
  3. Edwards 2015, p. 78.
  4. Baxter, Roger (1823). "The Adoration of the Shepherds."  . Meditations For Every Day In The Year. New York: Benziger Brothers.
  5. Lapide, Cornelius (1889). The great commentary of Cornelius à Lapide. Translated by Thomas Wimberly Mossman.
  6. 1 2 "Adoration of the shepherds | History, Art, & Facts". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 10 December 2023.
  7. Earls, Irene, Renaissance Art: A topical dictionary , Greenwood Publishing Group, 1987, ISBN   0-313-24658-0, p. 18.
  8. Hall, James (1996). Dictionary of Subjects and Symbols in Art. London: John Murray. p. 7.
  9. "The Cyber Hymnal: Come, All Ye Shepherds". Archived from the original on 28 March 2014. Retrieved 13 January 2015.

Bibliography

Adoration of the Shepherds
Preceded by New Testament
Events
Succeeded by