Ask the Scholar

According to the Gospels in the Christian New Testament, wise men came from the East to adore the Christ Child and acknowledge his divinity. They were often depicted as kings, underscoring the importance of their homage. The oldest king kneels before the Child and his mother. The middle-aged king looks back through the doorway in the ruin where the holy family has taken refuge. The youngest ruler is attired in elegant 16th-century German fashion. They were led to the Child by a star, which is in the upper left corner. In the distance, some of the kings' followers ride horses with very long necks, surely the artist's attempt at camels.The painter has created a kind of stage set for his drama, using a perspective system made popular by his famous fellow countryman Albrecht Dürer. The receding lines marked out in the masonry go back, more or less, to one point, the hand of the man in the doorway (at center).