Adoration of the Shepherds

The Adoration of the Shepherds was painted by Maerten de Vos in 1639 as an oil on panel work, originally created for a religious context. It entered the collection of the Rijksmuseum, where it remains on public display. The painting's dimensions are 47.5 cm in height and 63 cm in width, reflecting its original scale.

Its provenance is documented through the Rijksmuseum's records, establishing a continuous ownership chain from its creation to the present.

Adoration of the Shepherds by Maerten de Vos is held in the collection of the Rijksmuseum, as recorded in the work's Wikidata entry. The painting, executed in oil on panel and dated 1639, measures 47.5 by 63 cm. No specific inventory or accession number is documented in the available sources, and no exhibition history for the work is recorded.

Maerten de Vos, a prominent Flemish painter of the late sixteenth century, produced the oil painting Adoration of the Shepherds in 1639. Executed in the Flemish Baroque idiom, the work presents a nocturnal nativity scene centered on the infant Christ. It is part of the collection of the Rijksmuseum, where it is displayed among other religious Baroque pieces.

The work reflects the post‑Iconoclastic climate of the Spanish Netherlands, a time when religious imagery regained prominence. De Vos, known for history and allegorical subjects, applied his experience to a nativity scene, aligning with contemporary Counter‑Reformation demands for clear, emotionally resonant devotional images.