The Adoration of the Magi
1490.Not on display
The Virgin Mary sits beside Saint Joseph, holding the newborn Jesus in her lap, while king Melchior kisses the baby´s foot and Casper and Balthasar place their presents on a tray. The idyllic landscape and the architecture typical of northern European cities, as well as the composition, bluish-grey color scheme and hieratic figures clothed in robes with stiff folds, recall the Spanish-Flemish style in which Rodrigo was trained, and which his brother, Francisco, absorbed from him. The detail of Gaspar placing the goblet on a small round table is taken from Dirk Bouts. There are also evident similarities with works by Bartolomé Bermejo, who was active in Valencia in the late 1460s.
This work is a companion to Nativity (P2834), which is also in the Prado Museum collection. They probably come from the main altarpiece in the church of Santa María de Alicante.
