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Adoration of the Shepherds

A work made of pen and brown ink and brush and black ink, with black and red ink washes, over black chalk, on ivory laid paper.
CC0 Public Domain Designation

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  • A work made of pen and brown ink and brush and black ink, with black and red ink washes, over black chalk, on ivory laid paper.

Date:

c. 1750

Artist:

Francesco Fontebasso
Italian, 1707–1769

About this artwork

Here Francesco Fontebasso depicted the biblical story of the birth of Christ, pairing three astonished shepherds, who surround the Virgin and Child at center, with four angelic putti hovering above the humble manger. Joseph kneels in the right foreground.

An independent work, not related to a painting, the drawing is densely layered. Different colors of ink and wash delineate the figures’ garments and the manger’s rough walls and capture the effects of celestial light.

Status

Currently Off View

Department

Prints and Drawings

Artist

Francesco Fontebasso

Title

Adoration of the Shepherds

Place

Italy (Artist's nationality:)

Date  Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

1750

Medium

Pen and brown ink and brush and black ink, with black and red ink washes, over black chalk, on ivory laid paper

Dimensions

46.4 × 33.5 cm (18 5/16 × 13 1/4 in.)

Credit Line

Gift of Richard and Mary L. Gray

Reference Number

2019.847

IIIF Manifest  The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world.

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https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/244914/manifest.json

Extended information about this artwork

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

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