Lot 1120 Dα

A total of five versions of this composition by Abraham Bloemaert are known to exist. One is kept in the National Gallery in Warsaw, and another was owned by the Suermondt-Ludwig Museum in Aachen, but is now only recorded in photographs. A further three versions have been discovered within the past two years, but this version is thought to be the original as it shows the most similarity to Bloemaert's style around the turn of the century (Roethlisberger 1993, op. cit., p. 98).
The annunciation to the shepherds is one of the subjects most frequently depicted in Bloemaert's oeuvre. According to the Gospel of Luke (2,8-15), the shepherds were in the fields guarding their flocks when an angel appeared to them to announce the birth of Christ. In this painting we see seven shepherds, six of which have been abruptly awakened and now gaze in awe toward the heavens where an angel has appeared amid a bank of clouds, beaming with light and surrounded by the heavenly host. The angel bears a banderole, however this is only inscribed in the painting in Warsaw.
Bloemaert was a famous artist around 1600, and he led a well-organised workshop with many pupils and assistants. These employees painted numerous versions of his most popular compositions under the master's supervision.