Feminae: Medieval Women and Gender Index


  • Record Number: 4340
  • Author(s)/Creator(s): Gifford , E. Melanie.
  • Contributor(s):
  • Title: Van Eyck's Washington "Annunciation" : Technical Evidence for Iconographic Development
  • Source URL: Art Bulletin (Full Text via JSTOR) 81,1 (March 1999): 108-116. Link Info target = '_blank'>Art Bulletin (Full Text via JSTOR) 81,1 (March 1999): 108-116. Link Info
  • Description:
  • Article Type: Journal Article
  • Subject (See Also): Art History- Painting Iconography Jan van Eyck, Painter- Annunciation Mary, Virgin, Saint- Annunciation in Art
  • Award Note:
  • Geographic Area: Low Countries
  • Century: 15
  • Primary Evidence:
  • Illustrations: Twelve Figures. Figure One Jan van Eyck, "The Annunciation," after treatment in 1994. In color (Washington, D.C., National Gallery of Art, Andrew W. Mellon Collection). Figure Two "The Annunciation," photomicrograph of Gabriel's red cut-velvet cope (magnification 7.7x). In color. Figure Three "The Annunciation," photomicrograph of Gabriel's green brocade dalmatic (magnification 7.7x). In color. Figure Four "The Annunciation," infrared reflectogram assembly, showing van Eyck's underdrawing. Figure Five "The Annunciation," detail, wall painting roundels of Jacob and Issac. Figure Six "The Annunciation," detail, infrared reflectogram of Figure Five. Figure Seven "The Annunciation," photomicrograph of Jacob roundel and arch below (magnification 5.6x). Figure Eight "The Annunciation," photomicrograph of the lower edge of the wall painting depicting the Finding of Moses (magnification 5.6x Film). Figure Nine "The Annunciation," detail, inlaid stone floor. Figure Ten "The Annunciation," detail, infrared reflectogram, area of Figure Nine. Figure Eleven "The Annunciation," detail, lilies in blue and white vase. Figure Twelve "The Annunciation," detail, infrared reflectogram, area of Figure Eleven.
  • Table:
  • Abstract: Technical study of Jan van Eyck's "Annunciation" in the National Gallery of Art, Washington D.C., has revealed several significantly different stages in the artist's development of the composition. The initial conception, recorded in the underdrawing, set the scene in a church of uniform architecture with a decorative floor of carpet or patterned stone. Van Eyck revised his image throughout the painting process, introducing the rich decorations with the Old Testament references that characterize the final image. In an apparently late revision, van Eyck seems to have painted the majolica vase and lilies over the previously completed floor and the Virgin's mantle. [Reproduced by Permission of the College Art Association].
  • Related Resources:
  • Author's Affiliation: National Gallery of Art
  • Conference Info: - , -
  • Year of Publication: 1999.
  • Language: English
  • ISSN/ISBN: 00043079
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