The Annunciation

Follower or Workshop of Master of Flémalle

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Follower or Workshop of Master of Flémalle See author's file

The Annunciation

1420 - 1425. Oil on oak panel.
Room 058

The painting represents the Annunciation according to the account of Saint Luke (1:26–38). The archangel Gabriel, sent by God, visits Mary to announce that she will be the mother of Jesus. The conception is symbolised by the rays that emanate from the top of the composition, where God the Father appears enveloped by light amid a court of angels, and extend down to Mary. Some of the usual iconographical elements of the Annunciation, such as the dove of the Holy Spirit, are absent from this painting but others are included, for instance the stalk of lilies in a vase in the right foreground. Mary, reclining on cushions on a bench, is engrossed in reading the holy scriptures and has not yet sensed the angel’s presence.

Despite the solemnity of the ecclesiastic space where the scene unfolds, the bench, the book and, above all, the open cupboard lend it a certain private everyday air. The Virgin wears a voluminous blue mantle that is draped unnaturally over the ground in numerous folds and bears an indecipherable inscription running along its border. The angel carries a staff in his right hand and is dressed in a red pluvial cape with a wide border with scroll decoration of alternate plant motifs and letters, which is narrower and simpler at the hem. The cape is fastened at his chest with a brooch in the shape of a diptych whose left side displays a figure that is presumably Moses, as he bears two tablets. A stole with gold decoration of alternate pattée and hooked crosses completes the liturgical vestments. The angel also had a halo of rays, now badly abraded, which was depicted from an oblique as opposed to a frontal perspective, in accordance with his position. The scene takes place in a sort of atrium or entrance to a Gothic church with an impossible design that does not appear to represent a particular type.

The Museo del Prado officially accepted the attribution of the panel to the Master of Flémalle from 1933 onwards, albeit noting the differences with the Prado Betrothal (P001887). In 1985 the catalogue acknowledged the identification of the Master of Flémalle as Robert Campin, and ascribed the panel to the latter, expressly pointing out, as had been done since 1933, that there was no unanimity with respect to its attribution. It again recalled the differences in quality with the Betrothal, noting the possibility it was an early work executed in collaboration with an assistant. As for the painter, it seems evident that despite being familiar with some of the Master of Flémalle’s main creations and attempting to imitate some of his strong points, such as his compositional balance, achievement of a correct perspective and effective use of architectural symbolism, this Annunciation lacks the exquisite creativity found in the master’s finest Works. The style of painting is also very different.

This painting should therefore be attributed to a follower of his and dated to some years after the master produced his main Works.

Pérez Preciado, José Juan, Fifteenth-century netherlandish painting at the Museo Nacional del Prado. Catalogue raisonné, Madrid, Museo Nacional del Prado, 2024, p.184-190 nº.20

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Commented works: The Annunciation, Robert Campin (1420 - 1425), by Félix de Azúa

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Inventory number: P001915
Author: Follower or Workshop of Master of Flémalle
Title: The Annunciation
Date: 1420 - 1425
Technique: Oil
Support: Oak panel
Dimension: Width: 70 cm; Height: 76 cm
Provenance: Royal Collection (acquired by Felipe II from Jacome Trezzo for the Monasterio de El Escorial, Madrid, 1584; Oratorio de la enfermería, 1839).
Entry date: 1839

Bibliography +

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Other inventories +

Inv. Real Museo, 1857. Núm. 408.
"Escuela de van-Eick. (Flamenca del siglo 15) / 408. La Anunciación de nuestra señora. / El cuadro esta dividido en dos compartimentos por el edificio gótico que le sirve de fondo. A la derecha está María arrodillada recibiendo el mensaje divino, y a la izquierda el ángel cubierto con una riquísima capa de coro. (E) (tabla.) / Alto 2 pies, 8 pulg, 6 lin; ancho 2 pies, 6 pulg." [Inventario Real Museo, 1857]

Catálogo Museo del Prado, 1872-1907. Núm. 1853.

Inscriptions +

408.
Inscribed in orange. Front, lower left corner

21
Inscribed with chalk. Back, upper left corner

172
Inscribed in pen and ink. Back, upper left corner

La Anunciacion de N.^a S.^a / Este cuadro proced.e del Escorial es/taba colocada en el Oratorio de la / enferm.^a / Manera gotica
Handwritten label. Back, central area

Exhibitions +

Reunited
Madrid
06.06.2020 - 25.07.2021

Contraprestación con el Museo de San Marcos
Florencia
26.09.2019 - 07.01.2020

Fra Angelico and the Rise of the Florentine Renaissance
Madrid
28.05.2019 - 15.09.2019

Captive Beauty. Fra Angelico to Fortuny
Madrid
21.05.2013 - 10.11.2013

Die Geburt der Modernen Malerei - The Arise of Modern Painting
Frankfurt
21.11.2008 - 01.03.2009

Location +

Room 058 (On Display)

Displayed objects +

Window, Artistic stained-glass: Vidrieras artísticas realizadas con piezas de vidrio coloreado, que contienen motivos religiosos y elementos decoraticos, heráldicos, etc.; con orlas decorativas; unidas por medio de emplomado y con refuerzos metálicos en horizontal.