''The Birth of the Virgin'' is a 1661 painting by the Spanish artist Bartolomé Esteban Murillo.

History

He painted it for the Chapel of the Immaculate Conception in

Seville Cathedral The Cathedral of Saint Mary of the See ( es, Catedral de Santa María de la Sede), better known as Seville Cathedral, is a Roman Catholic cathedral in Seville, Andalusia, Spain. It was registered in 1987 by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site, along ...

, from which it and the same artist's ''Immaculate Conception'' were looted by French troops under marshal

Jean de Dieu Soult Jean may refer to: People * Jean (female given name) * Jean (male given name) * Jean (surname) Fictional characters * Jean Grey, a Marvel Comics character * Jean Valjean, fictional character in novel ''Les Misérables'' and its adaptations * Jea ...

. The French had hoped to confiscate '' The Vision of Saint Anthony of Padua'', but the city council proposed to exchange that work for ''Birth'' and it was thus removed from the chapel. It is now in the

Louvre The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is the world's most-visited museum, and an historic landmark in Paris, France. It is the home of some of the best-known works of art, including the ''Mona Lisa'' and the ''Venus de Milo''. A central l ...

in Paris.

Analysis

This is one of the most important works in the artistic production of Murillo, who based himself on models of daily life in

Andalusia Andalusia (, ; es, Andalucía ) is the southernmost autonomous community in Peninsular Spain. It is the most populous and the second-largest autonomous community in the country. It is officially recognised as a "historical nationality". The t ...

to create the painting. Apart from the presence of angels and the halo of the

Virgin Virginity is the state of a person who has never engaged in sexual intercourse. The term ''virgin'' originally only referred to sexually inexperienced women, but has evolved to encompass a range of definitions, as found in traditional, modern ...

, there is no other clue showing that this is a painting with a religious theme. The figure of the Virgin Mary is at the center of the composition, supported in the arms of various women. At the same time, a source of light emanates which illuminates the whole scene, although Saint Anne remains in the shadows, incorporated in the bed.

Saint Joachim Joachim (; ''Yəhōyāqīm'', "he whom Yahweh has set up"; ; ) was, according to Christian tradition, the husband of Saint Anne and the father of Mary, the mother of Jesus. The story of Joachim and Anne first appears in the Biblical apocrypha ...

is also depicted in the painting. The play of light that Murillo employs recalls the works of Rembrandt, which the painter may have admired in private collections.

Sources

*Nina A. Mallory ''El Greco to Murillo: Spanish Painting in the Golden Age, 1556–1700'', Harper & Row, 1990. *Albert Frederick Calvert, ''Murillo'' C. Scribner's sons, 1908. {{DEFAULTSORT:Birth of the Virgin, The 1661 paintings Paintings by Bartolomé Esteban Murillo in the Louvre Paintings of the Nativity of the Virgin