The Presentation in the Temple

Gioacchino Assereto

Download hi-res image TITLE The Presentation in the Temple
AUTHOR Gioacchino Assereto
DATE c. 1630
OBJECT TYPE AND MATERIAL Oil on canvas
DIMENSIONS cm 228 x 163
INVENTORY 458
ROOM XXXI
Work on display

This altarpiece, whose original location is unknown, is thought to be an early work by Gioacchino Assereto, painted at a time when he was very close to Cerano. Indeed their closeness has prompted scholars to surmise that Assereto may have spent time in Lombardy himself or else picked up the style from Bernardo Strozzi. The scene depicts the Presentation of Jesus in the Temple in Jerusalem, where every newborn child was brought by law to be offered to God along with two sacrificial turtle doves.