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Master of the Annunciation to the Shepherds , Spanish, c.1604-1656

Title

Christ Disputing with the Doctors

Date1640s

MediumOil on canvas

Dimensions

98.8 x 131.7 cm

Credit LineHeritage Gift, IIB Bank, 2001

Object numberNGI.4700

Description‘Master of the Annunciation to the Shepherds’ is a sobriquet created for the author of a homogeneous group of paintings that frequently represent scenes from the nativity of Christ. This artist worked mainly in Naples and his original and vigorous style of painting shows the influence of Caravaggio and Ribera.

The episode portrayed here is that of Christ as a young boy disputing with scholars and scribes in the Temple in Jerusalem. One man points to quotations from Isaiah (11:1), John (10:24) and Jeremiah (12:1), foretelling Christ’s coming, as if seeking confirmation that they are indeed true. Characteristically, the model is drawn from the humblest people of the Neapolitan region and shown in a very realistic manner. The second man recurs in other canvases by the artist. The picture remained in Naples and was purchased there in the 1830s, as a Caravaggio, by the 6th Viscount Powerscourt, for his house in County Wicklow.


ProvenanceJean-Baptiste-Joseph Wicar (1762-1834); acquired after his death by Viscount Powerscour in 1836; by descent; Sotheby's, London, 17 December 1998, lot 58; Rob Smeets, Milan; Heritage Gift, IIB Bank, 2001 Exhibition HistoryExhibition of the Works of the Old Masters: Winter Exhibition, Royal Academy, London, 1787

Taking Stock: Acquisitions 2000-2010, National Gallery of Ireland, Dublin, 13 March 2010 - 25 July 2010

Trove, Irish Museum of Modern Art, Dublin, 3 December 2014 - 8 March 2015
Label TextThe ‘Master of the Annunciation to the Shepherds’ is the name given to an unidentified artist who painted a homogeneous group of works, most of which represent scenes from the nativity. The artist worked mainly in Naples, and their vigorous and naturalistic style reveals the influence of Caravaggio and Ribera. Here, a twelve year-old Christ, left, debates with scholars of the temple in Jerusalem. The young man’s deep understanding of complex ideas is met with incredulity, conveyed in the furrowed brow and open mouth of the central figure. This New Testament account illustrates the supremacy of divine wisdom over that learned.