Template:POTD/2020-12-27

Picture of the day

The Adoration of the Shepherds is a theme in depictions of the Nativity in which shepherds are near witnesses to the birth of Jesus; the scene is based on the biblical account in Luke 2 and has inspired many artists over the years. The nativity scene typically shows shepherds and animals in the stable at Bethlehem, surrounding Mary and the Christ Child. In this 1662 oil painting of the Adoration by the Dutch Golden Age painter Gerard van Honthorst, Jesus is the centre of attention; the infant seems to glow, illuminating the surrounding figures. The work is in the collection of the Pomeranian State Museum in Germany.Painting credit: Gerard van Honthorst