The Adoration of the Shepherds

Named after a large panel depicting the parable of the Prodigal Son (Vienna, Kunsthistoriches Museum, inv. no. 986), which had previously been attributed to Jan Mandijn, the as yet unidentified artist of the present work was given his placeholder name by George Hulin de Loo in 1909 (Catalogue du Musée des Beaux-Arts de Gand, Ghent, pp. 55-56). The artist ran a prosperous workshop in Antwerp, working as a painter as well as a designer of tapestries and stained glass. The Master’s work is grounded in the aesthetic championed by Pieter Coecke van Aelst in the 1530s and likely began his training in Coecke’s workshop, or in that of one of Coecke’s close followers.

A less refined version of the present composition was sold at De Vuyst, Lokeren, 15 May 2021, lot 1.

We are grateful to Peter van den Brink for endorsing the attribution to the Master of the Prodigal Son on the basis of photographs (written communication, 23 April 2025).