Netherlands, Leuven, 15th century / c. 1480
The Annunciation
The Cleveland Museum of Art catalogs The Annunciation as painting (Netherlands, Leuven, 15th century · c. 1480).
Netherlandish artists are known for their attention to lifelike detail: notice the sliver of landscape through the window at the left of this composition.
A CLOSER LOOK
The museum identifies this painting as oil on wood and credits Albert Bouts (Netherlandish, 1451/55–1549).
The museum's collection notes: The scene of the Annunciation to Mary that she will give birth to Christ is depicted here as a contemporary scene that may have been familiar to any viewer at the end of the 1400s. Mary is portrayed as an ordinary but wealthy woman who is interrupted by the Archangel Gabriel as she reads a book of hours. This type of book was enormously popular in the late Middle Ages as a prayer and devotional book, particularly among the wealthy, literate nobility, and city aristocracy.
FOLLOW THE EVIDENCE
The Cleveland Museum of ArtThe AnnunciationOriginal explanation based on the sources above. Images carry their own reuse terms.