The Archangel Gabriel, huge peacock-feather wings outstretched behind him, kneels in front of the Virgin Mary, his head bowed in reverence. He has arrived with the news that she will conceive a child, Jesus Christ, through the Holy Ghost.
A small dove, the symbol of the Holy Ghost, flies towards the Virgin’s belly: this is the moment of Christ’s conception. It has been sent by God, whose hand we can see appearing from a deep blue cloud that represents the heavens. A golden light emanates from a gap in Mary’s pink dress and she bows her head towards it, in acceptance.
This picture comes from a palace belonging to the Medici, Florence’s ruling family at the time, where it most probably hung above a door. It was made as a pair; the other panel, showing seven Medici patron saints, is also in the National Gallery’s collection.
Text extracted from the ‘Provenance’ section of the catalogue entry in Dillian Gordon, ‘National Gallery Catalogues: The Fifteenth Century Italian Paintings’, vol. 1, London 2003; for further information, see the full catalogue entry.
C. Baker and T. Henry, The National Gallery: Complete Illustrated Catalogue, London 2001
Crafted from pinewood, the inner moulding was made in England in the nineteenth century, while the outer frame dates to the twentieth century. The panel is arch-shaped and framed in a landscape format, accommodating the curvature with ornate spandrels set in a gilt architectural moulding. These spandrels boast engraved laurel wreaths bound with ribbon against a backdrop of gold punch-tooling.
In the nineteenth century, Lippi’s The Annunciation and its frame were placed within a rosewood glass case for protection. In 1922 both the frame and its accompanying glass case underwent repairs. By 1931 the rosewood case was replaced, and the frame was converted to have a glass door fitted.
If you know more about this painting or have spotted an error, please contact us. Please note that exhibition histories are listed from 2009 onwards. Bibliographies may not be complete; more comprehensive information is available in the National Gallery Library.
These panels were made for a member of Florence’s ruling family, the Medici, and once hung in the Palazzo Medici. One panel shows the Annunciation (when the Virgin Mary was told she would conceive a son, Jesus Christ); the other, a gathering of patron saints of the Medici family. The panels are similar in size, scale and viewpoint, suggesting that they were designed as a pair, and were intended to hang where they could be viewed together.
They may have been placed over the doors of Piero de' Medici’s study – its ceiling was decorated with ceramic roundels representing the signs of the zodiac (and, therefore, the months). The Annunciation suits such a setting: its feast was celebrated on 25 March, the first day of the Florentine calendar year. Depicting Medici patron saints may have been a way to demonstrate the protection they offered to the city throughout the year.
