World Famous Painting Appreciation: Dürer's "The Visitation"

The Visitation is a 30.3 cm high and 21.1 cm wide woodcut by the Renaissance German artist Albrecht Dürer between 1503 and 1504, one of his Life of the Virgin series of prints, now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, Usa Museum of Art）。

"The Visitation of the Blessed Mary", also known as "The Visitation of the Blessed Mary", is one of the traditional Christian festivals, commemorated on May 31 in Western Christianity and May 30 in Eastern Christianity. Gospel of Luke 1.39-56 records the story of the "visit of the Virgin Mary," who had just conceived Jesus, to visit Elisabeth, her cousin, who had been pregnant with John the Baptist for six months.

According to the Gospel of Luke, Isabel was a descendant of the high priest Aaron. She and her husband, the priest Zachariah, were "righteous before God, and obeyed all the commandments and rituals of the Lord beyond reproach," but they were old and still had no children. While Zechariah was in the temple, the archangel Gabriel came and told Zechariah, "Do not be afraid, your wife will bear you a son, and you will call him John." He will be your joy, and many will rejoice in His birth because He is good in the eyes of the Lord. He must not drink wine or other fermented beverages, for he will be filled with the Holy Spirit before he is born. Zechariah doubted: How is it possible that he and his wife are old? The archangel Gabriel identified himself and told Zechariah that he would "become dumb and unable to speak" until it was fulfilled, for he did not believe it. After he returned to his home, his wife Isabel became pregnant. Six months later, archangel Gabriel was sent to Nazareth in Galilee to inform Isabel's cousin, The Virgin Mary, that she would conceive through the Holy Spirit and give birth to a son, called Jesus. Maria was also told that her cousin Zechariah was six months pregnant. Afterwards, Maria traveled to visit Zechariah in a small town in the mountains of Judah. When Zechariah heard Maria's greeting, the fetus jumped up in her womb and Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit. She shouted loudly, "You are blessed among women, and your belly is blessed." But why can I be so favored that my Lord's mother would come to visit me? As soon as your greeting rang out, the baby in my belly cheered. Blessed are those who believe the Lord will keep His promises! ”

In the picture, Maria and Isabel embrace in front of the door, while Isabel's husband, Zechariah, stands inside the door. The detailed mountain landscape in the background may come from the Alps. Dürer crossed the Alps twice between 1494 and 1495.

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World Famous Painting Appreciation: Dürer's "The Visitation"