The Virgin and Saint Joseph at Bethlehem (recto) and Virgin Annunciate (verso)
Jan Provoost (Bergen c.1465 - Bruges 1529)
Category
Art / Oil paintings
Date
1485 - 1529
Materials
Oil on panel (oak)
Measurements
877 x 317 mm (34 1/2 x 12 1/2 in)
Place of origin
Bruges
Order this imageCollection
Upton House, Warwickshire
NT 446765
Caption
The episode of the journey from Nazareth to Bethlehem is rarely depicted. This scene shows the arrival of Mary and Joseph in Bethlehem, where they were summoned to pay tax before the birth of Christ. This panel (made of oak) was originally the left wing of an altarpiece, probably a triptych. When the shutters were closed, the reverse of the panel, showing the ‘Virgin Annunciate’ in ‘grisaille’ (or monochrome), would therefore be seen to appear from the right. This was a departure from the standard iconography (way of depicting the scene), but was typical of Provoost. This is probably a work of the early 1520s, when the artist began to combine a more Mannered approach with his more traditional style, learnt in Bruges, where he settled in 1494.
Summary
Oil painting on panel, The Virgin and Saint Joseph at Bethlehem (recto) and Virgin Annunciate (verso) by Jan Provoost (Bergen c.1465 - Bruges 1529). The Virgin stands facing right, wearing a white headdress and blue mantle over a mauve robe; facing her is Saint Joseph, a basket over his left shoulder, a rope in his right hand tethering an ass, the head of which is seen low right. In the centre a woman holds a small child in her arms, and in the background is a red brick house and a view of a street leading to a church. Verso; the grisaille figure of the Virgin Annunciate stands in a niche, facing half right and wearing flowing robes, a book in her right hand held against her body, her left hand held forward; at the left a vase of lilies.
Provenance
Given with Upton House to the National Trust by Walter Samuel, 2nd Viscount Bearsted (1882 – 1948) shortly before his death in 1948
Credit line
Upton House, The Bearsted Collection (National Trust)
Makers and roles
Jan Provoost (Bergen c.1465 - Bruges 1529), artist
