MS M.399, fol. 157v

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Da Costa hours
Illuminated by Simon Bening (1483/84–1561)

Ghent, Belgium
ca. 1515
172 x 125 mm

Purchased by J. Pierpont Morgan (1837–1913), 1910

MS M.399, fol. 157v
Description: 

Shepherds: Annunciation—An angel appearing amid an aureole gestures toward three shepherds below who are tending a flock of sheep. Two shepherds fall back or react, raising their hands to cover their faces. A third shepherd is seated on the ground, eyes closed.
In the border around the miniature is a landscape inhabited by a rabbit and a deer. Buildings are visible in the background.

Credits: 

Image courtesy of Akademische Druck- u. Verlagsanstalt, Graz/Austria.