The Annunciation

This scene depicts the very instant that the Virgin Mary accepts the archangel Gabriel’s announcement that she will give birth to the son of God. The panel was originally one of three in an altarpiece celebrating the theme of motherhood. It is possible that Pierre de Bourbon and Anne de France, the French royals who commissioned this highly personal work, viewed it as an offering in thanks for the birth of their only child, Suzanne, who was conceived with great difficulty.