2-733-603 - Heritage Art/Heritage Images

Leaf from a Book of Hours: Annunciation to the Shepherds, c. 1460. The anonymous painter of this leaf has been associated with other books of hours that were produced in and for the city of Troyes. Nevertheless, his style may have originated in Paris where he seems to have developed his compositions, figures, and settings. He painted in a highly personal style that can be easily recognized by its facial types, architectural forms, and, in many miniatures, an apparent love of sumptuous textile patterns. The present miniature combines charm with dignified monumentality. The shepherd and shepherdess gaze upward toward the host of angels. At their feet, a dog is curled in slumber while sheep graze in lush green fields. The receding vista of chateaux, a lake, and distant hills cloaked in blue haze is the very essence of what a medieval miniature should be.