Cestello Annunciation (Botticelli)

The Annunciation

Artist	Sandro Botticelli
Year	1489
Type	Tempera on panel
Dimensions	150 cm × 156 cm (59 in × 61 in)
Location	Uffizi, Florence

The Annunciation, also known as the Cestello Annunciation, is a tempera painting created in 1489 by the Italian Renaissance master Sandro Botticelli.^[1] It is housed in the Uffizi Gallery of Florence and has been part of the collection since 1872.^[2]

The picture was commissioned in May of 1489 to decorate the chapel of the Florentine monastery Cestello, which is now known as Santa Maria Maddalena de'Pazzi.^[2][1]

The subject of the painting is the Annunciation, in which the angel Gabriel visits the Virgin Mary to tell her that she has been divinely impregnated and will bear the Christ child. Underneath the painting on its original frame are words in Latin from St. Luke's Gospel 1:35 "The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee."

The subject of the Annunciation is common in Christian art^[3][4] and has been depicted by many artists, in multiple formats, and in different time periods. In addition to the Cestello Annunciation, Botticelli also painted a 1485 Annunciation now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art^[5] and a 1495-1500 version now housed in the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum.^[6]

References

Botticelli Works Madonna and Child with an Angel Madonna and Child with an Angel Madonna della Loggia The Virgin and Child with Two Angels and the Young St. John the Baptist The Annunciation The Virgin and Child, St. John and an Angel Madonna and Child Adoration of the Magi Portrait of a Young Man Madonna in Glory with Seraphim Madonna of the Sea Madonna of the Rosegarden (Madonna del Roseto) Madonna and Child and Two Angels Portrait of Smeralda Brandini Fortitude Madonna and Child with Six Saints (Sant'Ambrogio Altarpiece) Virgin and Child with an Angel The Return of Judith to Bethulia The Discovery of the Murder of Holofernes Adoration of the Magi Portrait of a Young Woman Adoration of the Magi St. Sebastian Portrait of a Man with a Medal of Cosimo the Elder Portrait of Giuliano de' Medici Madonna and Child Catherine of Alexandria Nativity Portrait of Giuliano de' Medici The Birth of Christ Portrait of Giuliano de' Medici Madonna and Child with Eight Angels St. Augustine Madonna of the Magnificat (Madonna del Magnificat) Madonna of the Book (Madonna del Libro) Portrait of a Young Woman Portrait of a Young Woman Annunciation St. Sixtus II Adoration of the Magi Primavera Pallas and the Centaur Venus and Mars Portrait of a Young Man Portrait of a Young Man The Story of Nastagio degli Onesti Venus and the Three Graces Presenting Gifts to a Young Woman A Young Man Being Introduced to the Seven Liberal Arts The Virgin and Child Enthroned (Bardi Altarpiece) The Birth of Venus Annunciation Madonna Adoring the Child with Five Angels Madonna of the Pomegranate (Madonna della Melagrana) The Virgin and Child with Four Angels and Six Saints (Pala di San Barnaba) Vision of St. Augustine Christ in the Sepulchre Salome with the Head of St. John the Baptist Extraction of St. Ignatius' Heart Cestello Annunciation The Virgin Adoring the Child Lamentation over the Dead Christ Portrait of a Man San Marco Altarpiece St. Augustine in His Cell Madonna and Child and the Young St John the Baptist Portrait of Lorenzo di Ser Piero Lorenzi Virgin and Child with the Infant St. John the Baptist Holy Trinity (Pala delle Convertite) The Virgin and Child with Three Angels (Madonna del Padiglione) Calumny of Apelles Lamentation over the Dead Christ with Saints Last Communion of St. Jerome Portrait of Dante The Story of Virginia The Story of Lucretia Crucifixion Christ Crowned with Thorns Transfiguration, St Jerome, St Augustine Judith Leaving the Tent of Holofernes Agony in the Garden The Mystical Nativity Baptism of St. Zenobius and His Appointment as Bishop Three Miracles of St. Zenobius Three Miracles of St. Zenobius Last Miracle and the Death of St. Zenobius