Adoration of the Magi
Sandro Botticelli·1475
Historical Context
The Adoration of the Magi from 1475 at the Uffizi is one of Botticelli's most important early works, reportedly containing portraits of multiple members of the Medici family as well as a self-portrait of Botticelli himself at the right edge. The identification of specific Medici portraits—Cosimo the Elder as the oldest king, his sons Piero and Giovanni, and various grandsons—has made this painting a primary document of Florentine political culture in the 1470s, when the Medici's unofficial rulership was expressed through such embedded civic portraiture. The commission came from Guaspare di Zanobi del Lama, a money-changer associated with the Medici, for Santa Maria Novella. The painting cemented Botticelli's position as Florence's leading painter.
Technical Analysis
The complex composition arranges dozens of figures in a pyramidal structure centered on the Madonna and Child, Botticelli's precise drawing individualizing each figure while maintaining the overall compositional unity.
