The arrival of the Magi in art is one of wealth and gifts – more like the modern, materialistic Christmas than you might think
The Adoration of the Magi is one of the great themes of European religious art – and obviously one of the most Christmassy. But it is more in line with the materialism of a modern Christmas than traditionalists might like to think. It is very much an artistic celebration of presents and wealth.
One rich family is largely responsible for making the adoration of the Magi such a mercenary artistic subject. The Medici became the wealthiest family in Europe in the late middle ages and their money made them the political bosses of their city, Florence. The Medici identified with the Magi. It was a way to assert that rich men can be holy – and that money is not sinful.
The Magi are wise, rich kings from the east who come to give gifts to baby Jesus. The Medici deliberately set out to be seen as modern Magi. They dressed up as the Magi for an Epiphany procession through the streets of Florence – and their supporters regularly commissioned paintings of the Magi from the city's greatest artists.
So it is not surprising that most of my top five paintings of the adoration of the Magi have a Florentine flavour.
Botticelli's Adoration of the Magi in the Uffizi Gallery, Florence is in at No 5. In this painting that helped get him the patronage of the Medici, the young Sandro Botticelli portrays famous members of the family as wise men. Along with Cosimo, Piero, Lorenzo and Giuliano de'Medici stands, in an orange robe at the right of the crowd, Botticelli himself.
The Medici were not the only rich Florentines to identify with the Magi. At No 4 is Gentile da Fabriano's Adoration, laden with gold and glittering with luxury, painted for the ultra-wealthy Florentine citizen Palla Strozzi. This magical opulence is shared by Albrecht Dürer's Adoration of the Magi (No 3). These paintings literally sanctify wealth, making material gifts look both desirable and spiritually OK.
Benozzo Gozzoli's fresco The Procession of the Magi, No 2 in my top five, is one of the very few treasures of the Medici palace in Florence that can still be seen in its original location today. This painting has a huge appetite for the material world. Members of the Medici family ride horses in a long procession towards Bethlehem. Richly clad, they hunt and enjoy themselves on the journey. Gozzoli makes it look easy for a rich man to get into heaven after all. Forget that stuff about the eye of a needle.
For a young artist in 15th-century Florence, painting the Magi was clearly a good way to get noticed by the Medici. It was therefore very clever of Leonardo da Vinci to have a go. Yet where his rival Botticelli had put portraits of the Medici into a lovely adoration, the painting Leonardo started soon outstripped any practical calculations. It became a strange, eerie picture that he never even finished.
This masterpiece is at No 1. It is the greatest adoration ever. Leonardo shows infinite multitudes of humanity in a receding landscape, swarming over unfinished architecture, battling in the dust. In the foreground, dark-eyed Magi and a pensive horse contemplate the mysteries of life and death. Leonardo hints at untold riches of knowledge and unanswerable questions in this stupendous window on the cosmos. Reported by guardian.co.uk 12 hours ago.
The Adoration of the Magi is one of the great themes of European religious art – and obviously one of the most Christmassy. But it is more in line with the materialism of a modern Christmas than traditionalists might like to think. It is very much an artistic celebration of presents and wealth.
One rich family is largely responsible for making the adoration of the Magi such a mercenary artistic subject. The Medici became the wealthiest family in Europe in the late middle ages and their money made them the political bosses of their city, Florence. The Medici identified with the Magi. It was a way to assert that rich men can be holy – and that money is not sinful.
The Magi are wise, rich kings from the east who come to give gifts to baby Jesus. The Medici deliberately set out to be seen as modern Magi. They dressed up as the Magi for an Epiphany procession through the streets of Florence – and their supporters regularly commissioned paintings of the Magi from the city's greatest artists.
So it is not surprising that most of my top five paintings of the adoration of the Magi have a Florentine flavour.
Botticelli's Adoration of the Magi in the Uffizi Gallery, Florence is in at No 5. In this painting that helped get him the patronage of the Medici, the young Sandro Botticelli portrays famous members of the family as wise men. Along with Cosimo, Piero, Lorenzo and Giuliano de'Medici stands, in an orange robe at the right of the crowd, Botticelli himself.
The Medici were not the only rich Florentines to identify with the Magi. At No 4 is Gentile da Fabriano's Adoration, laden with gold and glittering with luxury, painted for the ultra-wealthy Florentine citizen Palla Strozzi. This magical opulence is shared by Albrecht Dürer's Adoration of the Magi (No 3). These paintings literally sanctify wealth, making material gifts look both desirable and spiritually OK.
Benozzo Gozzoli's fresco The Procession of the Magi, No 2 in my top five, is one of the very few treasures of the Medici palace in Florence that can still be seen in its original location today. This painting has a huge appetite for the material world. Members of the Medici family ride horses in a long procession towards Bethlehem. Richly clad, they hunt and enjoy themselves on the journey. Gozzoli makes it look easy for a rich man to get into heaven after all. Forget that stuff about the eye of a needle.
For a young artist in 15th-century Florence, painting the Magi was clearly a good way to get noticed by the Medici. It was therefore very clever of Leonardo da Vinci to have a go. Yet where his rival Botticelli had put portraits of the Medici into a lovely adoration, the painting Leonardo started soon outstripped any practical calculations. It became a strange, eerie picture that he never even finished.
This masterpiece is at No 1. It is the greatest adoration ever. Leonardo shows infinite multitudes of humanity in a receding landscape, swarming over unfinished architecture, battling in the dust. In the foreground, dark-eyed Magi and a pensive horse contemplate the mysteries of life and death. Leonardo hints at untold riches of knowledge and unanswerable questions in this stupendous window on the cosmos. Reported by guardian.co.uk 12 hours ago.
