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The Nativity with God the Father and Angels

A work made of etching on ivory laid paper.
CC0 Public Domain Designation

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  • A work made of etching on ivory laid paper.

Date:

after 1647

Artist:

Giovanni Benedetto Castiglione
Italian, 1609-1664

About this artwork

Although he was Genoese by birth, Giovanni Battista Castiglione worked among the greatest artists in Baroque Rome. A prolific painter, etcher, and draftsman, he produced several innovative renditions of the Nativity. The epic horizontal sweep of the present etching emphasizes the cosmic power of Christ’s heavenly father (entirely omitting Joseph, Christ’s earthly stepfather). This conceit reappears in an intimate vertical format in God the Father Regarding His Newborn Son (1972.986).

Status

Currently Off View

Department

Prints and Drawings

Artist

Giovanni Benedetto Castiglione

Title

The Nativity with God the Father and Angels

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.

1647–1664

Medium

Etching on ivory laid paper

Dimensions

20.5 × 40.2 cm (8 1/8 × 15 7/8 in.)

Credit Line

Harold Joachim Purchase Fund

Reference Number

1972.988

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.

Learn more.

https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/40783/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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