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Holy Family with a Garland of Flowers

European Art

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Holy Family with a Garland of Flowers

Artwork Details

Artist/Maker

Jan Brueghel the Elder
Flemish, 1568–1625
Peter Paul Rubens
Flemish, 1577–1640

Date

ca. 1620

Medium

Oil on panel

Accession #

1989.113

Dimensions

28 3/4 x 23 1/4 inches

Location

On View - Stent Family Wing, Level 2, Gallery 204

Description

This painting is the result of a collaboration between Jan Brueghel the Elder, who painted the garland, and an unknown artist from the circle of Peter Paul Rubens, responsible for the figures. Brueghel earned the nicknames Flower Breughel because of his floral still lifes and Velvet Breughel for his refined brushwork.

Brueghel’s flower garlands were highly prized by collectors in the 1600s. The beautifully painted flowers signify the preciousness of the Holy Family’s sacred image. Flowers—especially lilies, irises, and roses—symbolize the Virgin’s purity and divinity.

Credit

Purchase with funds from Alfred Austell Thornton in memory of Leila Austell Thornton and Albert Edward Thornton, Sr., and Sarah Miller Venable and William Hoyt Venable

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