Artwork
The Holy Family with Young St. John, Adoring the Child
The Holy Family with Young St. John, Adoring the Child is a paint painting. It dates from 1600 and is held in the collection of the Gemäldegalerie Berlin. This painting, titled The Holy Family with Young St.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
The painting depicts the Holy Family, Mary, the Christ Child, the young Saint John the Baptist, and Joseph, set in a nocturnal Nativity scene.
The painting depicts the Holy Family, Mary, the Christ Child, the young Saint John the Baptist, and Joseph, set in a nocturnal Nativity scene. The figures kneel in adoration before the Christ Child, who lies on a cloth on the ground, while an ox and a mule appear in the background, evoking the traditional manger setting. Saint John holds a reed cross, a prefiguration of Christ's Passion, and his presence signals the continuity between the Nativity and the future ministry of Jesus. The landscape unfolds under a starlit sky, reinforcing the sacred event's humility and divine light.
Technique & Style
Created around 1600 by a follower of Lorenzo di Credi, this religious painting utilizes oil applied to a poplar panel support. The work depicts the Nativity of Jesus, featuring the Holy Family with the young Saint John adoring the Christ Child, accompanied by a mule and oxen within a landscape setting. As part of the Solly Collection, the piece is held by the Gemäldegalerie in Berlin. The composition focuses on the adoration scene, integrating human figures and animals into the surrounding environment.
History & Provenance
The Holy Family with Young St. John, Adoring the Child is a religious painting dated to circa 1600 and attributed to a follower of Lorenzo di Credi. Executed in oil on a poplar panel, it depicts the Nativity scene with Mary, the Christ Child, Saint John the Baptist, Joseph, a mule, oxen, and a landscape setting. The work entered the Gemäldegalerie Berlin as part of the Solly Collection, where it remains.
Its precise inventory number is not published in the sources consulted, and no exhibition records are noted in the referenced documentation.
Legacy
The Holy Family with Young St. John, Adoring the Child, painted in 1600, entered the Solly Collection and has been displayed at the Gemäldegalerie Berlin since its acquisition. Its attribution to a follower of Lorenzo di Credi has made it a reference point for studies of the artist’s workshop and the devotional imagery of the period. The work’s presence in a major state museum underscores its recognized importance within early Baroque religious painting and continues to inform scholarly discussions of Nativity subjects in 17th‑century art.
Overview
This painting, titled The Holy Family with Young St. John, Adoring the Child, presents a tranquil depiction of a sacred moment. Executed in paint, the artwork centers on the Christ Child, surrounded by the Virgin Mary, Saint Joseph, and the youthful Saint John the Baptist. The composition evokes an atmosphere of profound reverence and quiet contemplation, inviting viewers into the intimate scene of devotion.
Artist & collection
The Nativity with the Infant Saint John
Worshipping the Christ Child
Holy Family
Worshipping the Christ Child
Adoration of the Child
The Adoration of the Christ Child
De aanbidding van het Christuskind
The Adoration of the Child
Virgin Adoring the Christ Child with St. John the Baptist and Two Angels
The Holy Family with Saint John the Baptist and Saint Margaret
