Verkündigung

The Annunciation was Lorenzo Monaco's most frequently treated subject, returning to it in panel paintings, illuminated manuscripts, and altar programs across his career. His versions consistently differ from the emerging naturalistic approach of his contemporaries: where Florentine painters after 1400 were beginning to place the Annunciation in recognizable architectural space under the influence of ancient relief sculpture, Monaco retained the gold ground and floating figures of the Gothic tradition, making the sacred encounter feel transcendent rather than historical. His Annunciation panels were produced primarily for monastic and private devotional use, and their otherworldly quality suited an audience that valued contemplative beauty over narrative legibility.

The angel's approach is conveyed through tilted posture and the sweep of elaborate wings rather than spatial recession. Monaco's palette for Annunciation subjects typically combines celestial blues for the Virgin with gold and orange for the angel, creating a chromatic hierarchy that signals the encounter's divine nature.