Standing on the Virgin's lap, the Christ Child looks affectionately at his mother, whose bare breast alludes to her condition as the source of life. Behind them, Saint Joseph and Saint Ann contemplate the Child, reflecting upon his future as Redeemer.

Rubens used his wife, Isabella Brant, as the model for the Virgin in this composition, giving the work an affectionate and close feeling that was quite common in votive works from his mature period.

In 1667, this painting is listed at the Monastery of El Escorial, from whence it entered the Prado Museum in 1839.