This is one of more than a dozen versions made by contemporaries of Botticelli after an original that the artist painted ca. 1481. The many versions attest to the immediate success of Botticelli's composition and its appeal to contemporary Florentine collectors. The title derives from the opening words of the Virgin's song of exaltation, Magnificat anima mea dominum (My soul doth glorify the Lord), which she is writing in the book before her.
A contemporary copy, one of seven replicas, after Botticelli's tondo (ca. 1481) now in the Uffizi, Florence.
The painting derives its name from the opening words of the Virgin's song of exaltation, "Magnificat anima mea dominus ..." (My soul doth glorify the Lord), Gospel of Luke, Chapter 1, which she is writing in the book before her.