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拍品專文
The present Biblical scene is derived from Luke 1:39-45 which says:
39 At that time Mary got ready and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judea, 40 where she entered Zechariah's home and greeted Elizabeth. 41 When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. 42 In a loud voice she exclaimed: "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear! 43 But why am I so favored, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? 44 As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. 45 Blessed is she who has believed that the Lord would fulfill his promises to her!
In this passage, the Virgin Mary, dressed in her blue robes and visibly pregnant, and Joseph have gone to meet Elizabeth, who is pregnant with St. John the Baptist but has not felt him move yet, and her husband Zechariah. When Mary greets Elizabeth, John recognizes Mary's voice and moves, causing his mother to exclaim as in line 42. This moment has been interpreted as the moment Jesus and John already recognize each other, forming the beginnings of their lifelong friendship.
Mughal artists were exposed to Biblical and other Western images through prints brought by travelers hopeful to convert the Mughals to Christianity. Instead, the artists used the prints as source material, and one can only imagine that several copies were made by master artists of the kitabkhana, perhaps in a contest to display their skill. In fact, there is a nearly identical copy to this painting in the Rietberg Museum. Both have nearly identical palette, the same abbreviation of the detail to the hands, and the signature in the yellow robe. There are very minor differences, such as in the profiles of the women, and also in condition. In fact, they are so closely related, there must have been a common source; however, as prints are ephemeral, often they were lost. However, on rare occasions the source can still be identified, as is the case here. G.A. Bailey has connected the Rietberg painting to a print by Hieronymus Wierix (1553-1619), a Flemish family of printers. F. Weis has further identified this print to be from a series of 15 prints made in 1602/03. It is probable the entire series was brought to India by missionaries and served as the source for other Mughal paintings. It seems appropriate that these two paintings who share an origin also share a common champion in Doris Wiener.
39 At that time Mary got ready and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judea, 40 where she entered Zechariah's home and greeted Elizabeth. 41 When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. 42 In a loud voice she exclaimed: "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear! 43 But why am I so favored, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? 44 As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. 45 Blessed is she who has believed that the Lord would fulfill his promises to her!
In this passage, the Virgin Mary, dressed in her blue robes and visibly pregnant, and Joseph have gone to meet Elizabeth, who is pregnant with St. John the Baptist but has not felt him move yet, and her husband Zechariah. When Mary greets Elizabeth, John recognizes Mary's voice and moves, causing his mother to exclaim as in line 42. This moment has been interpreted as the moment Jesus and John already recognize each other, forming the beginnings of their lifelong friendship.
Mughal artists were exposed to Biblical and other Western images through prints brought by travelers hopeful to convert the Mughals to Christianity. Instead, the artists used the prints as source material, and one can only imagine that several copies were made by master artists of the kitabkhana, perhaps in a contest to display their skill. In fact, there is a nearly identical copy to this painting in the Rietberg Museum. Both have nearly identical palette, the same abbreviation of the detail to the hands, and the signature in the yellow robe. There are very minor differences, such as in the profiles of the women, and also in condition. In fact, they are so closely related, there must have been a common source; however, as prints are ephemeral, often they were lost. However, on rare occasions the source can still be identified, as is the case here. G.A. Bailey has connected the Rietberg painting to a print by Hieronymus Wierix (1553-1619), a Flemish family of printers. F. Weis has further identified this print to be from a series of 15 prints made in 1602/03. It is probable the entire series was brought to India by missionaries and served as the source for other Mughal paintings. It seems appropriate that these two paintings who share an origin also share a common champion in Doris Wiener.