Getty Museum
The Presentation in the Temple
Creator
Simon BeningFlemish Illuminator · 1483–1561
All works by this person →One of the most celebrated painters of Flanders in the 1500s, Simon Bening was hailed by Portuguese art critic Francisco da Hollanda as the greatest master of illumination in all of Europe. In addition to producing books for powerful aristocrats such as Cardinal Albrecht of Brandenburg, Bening worked for a group of international royal patrons including Emperor Charles V and Don Fernando, the Infan
More on Getty ULAN- Date
- about 1525–1530
- Medium
- Tempera colors, gold paint, and gold leaf
- Culture
- Flemish
- Department
- Manuscripts
- Institution
- Getty Museum
Joseph and Mary bring the infant Jesus into the entryway of the Temple, where Simeon, a devout priest of Jerusalem, reaches out to accept the child. According to Hebrew law, the first-born son of each Jewish family was presented to God forty days after his birth. Joseph holds two turtledoves, the traditional sacrifice, while a number of people behind him carry burning candles. Blue smoke rises from the glowing orange wick of a candle that has just been extinguished by a draft from the outside door on the left. The Holy Spirit had told the elderly Simeon that he would see the Lord's anointed one before dying and urged him to go to the Temple. The Latin inscription around the border records Simeon's words as he took the baby into his arms: *Nunc timittis servum tuum Domine secundum* (Now you dismiss your servant, Lord, according [to your word]).
The authoritative record is held by Getty Museum. LinkedCulture surfaces this object and its connections; it does not alter institutional metadata.
Get printable QR codesHide QR codes
Open QR codes for this object page and the museum record. They stay collapsed until needed.
Related across collections
Semantically similar works from Getty Museum and other institutions.