History The Annunciation, also known as the Cestello
Annunciation by Sandro Botticelli was commissioned by the church of
the convent of Cestello in 1489. This church is now known as the
Santa Maria Maddalena dePazzi. The materials used for this painting
is tempera paints on wood panel This piece is now housed in the
Ufizzi Gallery in Florence
Slide 4
White Lily White lilies are usually associated with the Virgin
Mary because they are a symbol of purity. The white of the lily
represented her purity and the golden stamen of the lily represents
her glowing soul. White lilies are very common in annunciation
scenes, usually placed in vases at the corner of the scene or in
Gabriels hand. In this particular annunciation scene, we see the
second placement.
Slide 5
Positions of Mary and Gabriel Most annunciation scenes of this
time period show Mary kneeling and the angel Gabriel bending down
to touch Mary. In this scene, Botticelli reverses the positions of
Gabriel and Mary to create a more dynamic scene. Botticelli also
creates a pyramidal composition between the two figures, which is
becoming more and more popular in Italy to show depth and
composition.
Slide 6
The Book and The Blue We know that this is an annunciation
scene partially based on the book on the stand. In most
annunciation scenes of this time, Mary is shown reading, or at
least holding a book or near an open book. Mary is also wearing a
blue robe, which is also very characteristic of annunciation scenes
as well as very characteristic of Mary. The colour blue in
Christian painting also symbolizes heavenly grace, good health, and
hope.
Slide 7
Original Framework On the original framework of the painting,
under Mary, there is a short scripture from St. Lukes Gospel 1:35.
In Latin it reads The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the
power of the highest shall overshadow thee. This passage is an
excerpt from the annunciation story in the Bible which is Luke
1:26-38. What is written on the frame is part of what Gabriel says
to the Virgin Mary in the original Bible story.
Slide 8
Halos The halo is very common in the Italian Renaissance style,
and less so in the Northern European Renaissance. We can help place
where the work was made based on the usage of halos. We are also
seeing the more Byzantine style of halo here rather than the
progression towards the very thin outline of the halo which happens
later in the Renaissance. In Christianity, the halo represents a
window into heaven, where God is the source of light.