Today the National Gallery returns Piero della Francesca’s Nativity to public display after a it has undergone major cleaning and restoration. It is one of the most well-known depictions of the birth of ist and familiar from its frequent reproduction on Christmas cards.
The Art Newspaper has an article about the painstaking restoration project which can be seen at In time for Christmas: London's National Gallery unveils newly-restored Piero della Francesca nativity scene
The National Gallery has produced a video about the restoration which is interesting viewing and can be watched at Behind the scenes in Conservation: Restoring Piero della Francesca's 'Nativity'
Regular readers of this blog will be aware that I am especially fond of the surviving works of Piero amongst early Renaissance painters and his role as the local artist in his home town of San Sepolchro.
Reading the article it really is a wonder that we have the picture at all to view, and indeed that only now is its symbolism being again understood and appreciated. That is excellent news not just for art enthusiasts and historians but for historians of fifteenth century spirituality and culture.
The link to the Visions of St Bridget of Sweden and to Bridgettine spirituality which was so influential across much of later medieval Europe is interesting of itself but also helps anchor Piero in the wider milieu of contemporary devotion.
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