Artwork
The Adoration of the Shepherds
The Adoration of the Shepherds is an oil painting by the Rococo painting artist Christian Wilhelm Ernst Dietrich. It dates from 1760 and is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
About this work
It joined the Met's founding purchase in 1871, passing from the Rothan collection in Brussels through Etienne Le Roy before crossing the Atlantic.
In a stable lit by warm candlelight, shepherds kneel before the Christ Child as the Virgin Mary looks on, painted in the 1760s by Christian Wilhelm Ernst Dietrich in the Dutch manner he admired. Signed and dated C. W. E. Dietrich 176[ ] at lower right, the canvas measures barely twenty-two by twenty-nine inches. It joined the Met's founding purchase in 1871, passing from the Rothan collection in Brussels through Etienne Le Roy before crossing the Atlantic.
Technique & Style
Christian Wilhelm Ernst Dietrich's The Adoration of the Shepherds (1760) is executed in oil paint on canvas, measuring 54.9 by 73 centimeters. Stylistically the work blends late Baroque dynamism with the lighter, more decorative sensibility of the Rococo, qualities consistent with Dietrich's eclectic mid-eighteenth-century practice. Beyond its medium, support, and dimensions, the available sources do not document specific details of the artist's handling or the painting's condition.
History & Provenance
Christian Wilhelm Ernst Dietrich executed The Adoration of the Shepherds in 1760. Created as an oil painting on canvas, the work measures 54.9 by 73 centimeters and depicts a religious scene featuring the Christ Child, Mary, Joseph, and shepherds. The painting was at one point held by William T. Blodgett, and it eventually entered the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where it remains.
The specific circumstances of its original commission are not detailed in the available records, though the date of inception is firmly established as 1760.
Context
The Adoration of the Shepherds (1760) is an oil on canvas religious painting by Christian Wilhelm Ernst Dietrich. It entered the Metropolitan Museum of Art through the collection of William T. Blodgett and is documented in the museum's records as a depiction of the shepherds' adoration of the infant Christ, accompanied by figures such as Mary, Joseph, a donkey, and a dog. The composition is characteristic of Dietrich's eclectic religious scenes of the mid-eighteenth century.
Overview
Christian Wilhelm Ernst Dietrich's "The Adoration of the Shepherds," an oil on canvas from the 1760s, depicts the biblical nativity. This modestly sized work exemplifies the German artist's celebrated ability to emulate the styles of earlier masters, particularly the Dutch, through its intimate composition and subtle lighting. Signed by the artist, it represents a key example of his work and was among the foundational acquisitions of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Subject & Meaning
The painting illustrates the biblical account of the shepherds' visit to the newborn Jesus. Set within a humble stable, the composition centers on the infant, the Virgin Mary, and the kneeling shepherds, all illuminated by a soft, warm glow. This intimate portrayal emphasizes the sacred moment of adoration and the simplicity of the nativity narrative, inviting the viewer into the scene.
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Artist & collection
Artist
Christian Wilhelm Ernst Dietrich
Christian Wilhelm Ernst Dietrich (30 October 1712 – 23 April 1774) was a German painter and art administrator. In his own works, he was adept at imitating many earlier artists, but never developed a style of his own.
- The Adoration of the Shepherds
The Adoration of the Shepherds
The Adoration of the Shepherds
The Adoration of the Shepherds
The Adoration of the shepherds
The Raising of Lazarus
Death in exile
Anbetung der Hirten
The Adoration of the Shepherds
The Raising of Lazarus
Adoration of the Sheperds
Einkehr nach der Jagd