I have a bizarre fascination for all things Catholic. Currently I have in my possession three rosaries, a five volume set of Butler's Lives of The Fathers, Martyrs and Other Principal Saints, and four paintings of the Madonna and Child. I think it all stems from an unnatural adoration for paintings of the Annunciation. This is a beginning of gallery of Annunciations that are viewable on the Web, which is mostly for my own organizational purposes. Eventually it will be more exhaustive than merely this.

The Annunciation was the announcement by the angel Gabriel to Mary that she would conceive a Son of the Holy Spirit, and that he was to be called Jesus. This is related in Luke 1:26-38. The feast of the Annunciation is celebrated on March 25th.

The Annunciation appears frequently as a subject in Gothic, Renaissance, and Baroque art in Europe, because of its importance to Christianity as a prelude to the redemption of the world. Representations of the Annunciation usually include a depiction of the angel Gabriel approaching Mary. Gabriel usually carries a stem of white lilies, and Mary is often employed in reading, needlework, or some such thing she is being interrupted in. Mary and Gabriel are both haloed, and often there is a depiction of the Holy Spirit as a white dove in flight, beaming light upon Mary. Both figures are robed and Mary, as is traditional, is in a red or white gown, and blue mantle. The positioning of the figures is often in profile, with Gabriel entering from the viewer's left, and Mary, usually seated, on the right.

The Annunciation, c. 1333 Simone Martini (c.1285-1344) Tempera on wood panel, 184 x 210 cm Florence, Galleria degli Uffizi	The Annunciation, 1435-45 Fra Angelico (c.1400-1455) Tempera on wood panel, 194 x 194 cm Madrid, Museo del Prado
The Annunciation, c. 1435 Donatello (1386-1466) Gilded pietra serena, 218 x 168 cm Florence, Santa Croce	The Annunciation, c.1440 Fra Filippo Lippi (c.1406-1469) Tempera on wood panel, left panel: 63.8 x 25.1 cm; right panel: 63.8 x 25.4 cm New York, The Frick Collection
The Annunciation, c.1445-1450 Fra Filippo Lippi (c.1406-1469) Rome, Galleria Doria Pamphilj	The Annunciation, c. 1450 Petrus Christus (c. 1410-1473) Oil on wood, 78.7 x 65.7 cm New York, The Metropolitan Museum of Art
The Annunciation, c. 1472-75 Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519) Tempera on wood panel, 98 x 217 cm Florence, Galleria degli Uffizi	The Annunciation, c. 1485 Sandro Botticelli (c.1445-1510) Tempera on wood panel, 19.1 x 31.4 cm New York, The Metropolitan Museum of Art
The Annunciation, c.1489/90 Sandro Botticelli (c.1445-1510) Tempera on wood panel, 150 x 156 cm Florence, Galleria degli Uffizi	The Annunciation, c. 1492 Sandro Botticelli (c.1445-1510) Tempera on wood panel New York, The Hyde Art Museum
The Angel of the Annunciation, 1498/1503 Giovanni di Domenico (c. 1500-1571) Stained glass, 199.4 x 78.8 cm Washington, D.C., National Gallery	The Annunciation, c.1518 Veit Stoß (c.1438-1533) Polychrome wood Nürnberg, St.Lorenzkirche
The Annunciation, 1608-9 Caravaggio(1573-1610) Oil on canvas, 285 x 205 cm Nancy, Musee des Beaux-Arts	The Annunciation El Greco (1541-1614) Oil on wood panel, 49 x 37 cm Madrid, Museo del Prado
The Annunciation, c. 1623 Orazio Gentileschi (1563-1639) Oil on canvas Turin, Galleria Sabauda	The Annunciation, c.1660 Bartolome Esteban Murillo (c.1617-1682) Oil on canvas, 142 x 107.5 cm St. Petersburg, The State Hermitage Museum
The Annunciation, 1888 Adolphe William Bouguereau (1825-1905) Oil on Canvas Private Collection	The Annunciation, 1914 J.W.Waterhouse (1849-1917) Oil on canvas Private Collection

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