The Nativity by Piero della Francesca: Angels Singing on a Tuscan Hill
A barefoot choir of five angels sings on a bare Tuscan hilltop, two of them playing lutes. In front of them the newborn Christ lies on the hem of his mother’s blue cloak, spread on the stony ground, while she kneels with her hands together. Behind her, Joseph sits on a donkey’s saddle, two shepherds point to the sky, and a magpie perches on the roof of a ramshackle shed. This is Piero della Francesca’s Nativity , one of the last pictures by one of the great painters of the Early Renaissance, and one of the best-loved Christmas images in the National Gallery in London. The picture below is our vintage poster of the painting; the original is shown further down. Vintage art poster by Sapiens Verbum after Piero della Francesca, The Nativity (National Gallery, London). The painting is reproduced unchanged inside a decorative frame with the title. Available from the Sapiens Verbum print shop. 🖼️ Get the vintage poster → License this image ...