The Adoration of the Magi, from a Mirror of Holiness (Mir’at al-quds) of Father Jerome Xavier
Unknown Artist
1602–4
Medium
Gum tempera, ink, and gold on paper
Dimensions
image: 22.7 × 12.2 cm · sheet: 26.3 × 15.6 cm
Classification
Manuscript
Department
Indian and Southeast Asian Art
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
John L. Severance Fund
Accession Number
2005.145.36.b
About this artwork
In this Nativity scene, familiar in Christian contexts, Mary and Joseph present the infant Jesus to the three Magi, who have placed their crowns on the ground in homage to the King of Kings. The three Magi are portrayed in Portuguese costumes to indicate to a Mughal audience that they are foreigners who believed in Christ. The artist cleverly and humorously indicates that the Magi have just arrived in Bethlehem by depicting their three camels in the bottom corner. One exhausted camel’s tongue ha...