The Bible in Pictures

With El Greco the room has disappeared. Mary kneels, the angel stands on a cloud, the dove comes down in a burst of light, and above them a choir of angels makes music.

The canvas, more than three metres high, was the centre of the altarpiece El Greco painted from 1596 to 1600 for the Augustinian college of Doña María de Aragón in Madrid. The altarpiece was taken apart in the nineteenth century; five of its paintings are in the Prado, a sixth in Bucharest. El Greco does not show the angel's greeting but the moment after Mary's question: “The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee” (Luke 1:35).

The dove comes down in a wedge of light, surrounded by the heads of cherubs.

The dove comes down in a wedge of light, surrounded by the heads of cherubs.

Between Mary and the angel a bush burns without being consumed. It is the bush of Moses, an old image for the virginity of Mary.

Between Mary and the angel a bush burns without being consumed. It is the bush of Moses, an old image for the virginity of Mary.

Above, a concert of angels with harp, viol and other instruments.

Above, a concert of angels with harp, viol and other instruments.