[BASSANO, Jacopo] d'après

The Adoration of the Shepherds Oil on canvas, 97 x 65 cm, lined (old lining), keyed frame. "This painting cannot be an Italian work realized by the Bassano's workshop or their successors, but a Flemish work realized from a copy that could have been seen by the painter or from an engraving". The work would then date from the XVIIth century. "There is no underlying design visible on the reflectography and the X-ray shows no change in composition" On the left the Virgin kneels, she holds a white veil on which the Child Jesus is lying. Above the head of the Child, St. Joseph bending slightly forward. Between the head of St. Joseph and the Child, the head of an ox is emerging. In front of the Child, and in the center, a shepherd kneels, leaning forward, in admiration. Behind this shepherd, two other shepherds fearfully step forward. In the corner, a small peasant sits on his knees. Between this boy and the two peasants, a goat and two sheep are kneeling. All the characters are lightly illuminated by the radiance emanating from the Infant Jesus. Attached is an autograph document signed by Charles Doudelet (April 25, 1932) attributing the painting to Jacopo Bassano. Also attached is an analysis from the laboratories of the Catholic University of Louvain (1987), by Thérèse Poilvache-Lambert. Provenance: Bought by a Belgian collector about 50 years ago from a cloister in Ghent, who sold it to finance a new roof. By inheritance to the present owner