Angels announcing to the shepherds the Birth of Jesus

Bassano employs a pronounced chiaroscuro, contrasting deep, enveloping shadows with the angel’s luminous aura. The stark highlights carve the figures from the dark background, creating a dramatic focus on the moment of announcement. The brushwork combines detailed rendering of the shepherds’ garments with softer, diffused light around the celestial form.

Painted in the mid‑sixteenth century, the canvas entered the collection of the Museo del Prado, where it remains part of the museum’s holdings of Italian Renaissance religious art. Its provenance traces back to the artist’s workshop in Bassano del Grappa before being acquired by the Spanish royal collection and later transferred to the Prado.