Black People in European Sculpture

The Adoration of the Magi

Entry ID

45 (13/01/2022)

Formal title of the work

The Adoration of the Magi

Description of the sculpture

Oak relief showing the Adoration of the Magi with the Virgin Mary and the infant Jesus in the centre and the Kings Caspar and Melchoir on her right and Joseph and Balthasar, depicted here as the African Magus, on her left.

URLs where this is recorded/available

Type of object

Relief panel

Base

Base present - appears to be the original base

Dimensions

Height: 31.5 cm
Width: 29 cm
Depth: ? cm

Materials

Oak
Paint / pigment
Gold

Specific techniques used

Carving
Gilding
Patination

Overall colour

Polychrome

Does the Black person have a specific identity?

Identifiable: person from Bible/Christian saint

Identity of Black person (real or fictive)

Saint Balthasar

Attributes

Golden vessel

Role within sculpture

Key subsidiary role

Gender

Male

Age

Adult

Status

Royal

Clothing

Wearing clothes – European/Western clothing

Evidence of enslavement

None

Action or activity

Standing

Emotional state

Neutral/emotionless
Noble/proud

Focus of gaze of Black person

Indeterminate

Sculptural context

Domestic: Biblical/mythological

Place of production

Mechelen, Belgium

Period of production

Sixteenth century (1500-1599)

Date of Production

c. 1500 - 1520

Date inferred from

Inferred from stylistic features

Price history

Bought for £7 9s

Original purpose

Devotional

Original display setting

Sacred: convent/monastery
Sacred: other

Current owner

Victoria and Albert Museum

Current / most recently known location

Victoria and Albert Museum

Accession number

643-1897

Provenance history

1897: acquired by South Kensington Museum (now named the Victoria and Albert Museum)

Notes

This piece may have originally stood at the centre of a group of religious figures set in a framed garden. This type of tableau or group was known as a hortus conclusus or closed garden. It seems that these gardens were made only in Malines. They were popular in the Southern Netherlands in the late 1400s and and early 1500s, when this relief was made. They were particularly associated with convents and hospitals, where prayers were offered to the images of saints shown in the miniature gardens.