The Mérode Altarpiece

The central panel depicts the Annunciation to the Virgin Mary, while the side panels show the donors and Saint Joseph working in his carpentry shop.

Attributed to Robert Campin and his workshop (Netherlands, 1515 - 20)

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The Adoration of the Magi

The polychrome wood sculptures depict the three wise men from the East presenting gifts to the infant Jesus and his mother, Mary.

Hans Thoman (Germany, 1515 - 1520) 

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The Unicorn in Captivity

The final piece in the famous series of seven late Gothic tapestries known as The Unicorn Tapestries.

(Southern Netherlands - likely Brussels, c. 1495–1505)

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The Bonnefont Cloisters,

 overlooking Fort Tryon Park and the River

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The George Washington Bridge,

seen through branches, reminding us that we are in New York, not France. 

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We left The Cloisters after a couple of hours and headed for Chinatown. After a delicious dinner, we returned to our hotel and went to bed early. After breakfast on Wednesdy morning we arrived at the Metropolitan Museum at 10:00, as it opened to the public. As planned, we were among the first in line. Our plan was to visit the European Paintings galleries, in order, spending the most time among the works we love the most. It was the perfect plan.

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The Birth of the Virgin

Fra Carnevale (Italy, 1467)

Breaking with convention, the artist shows the Madonna’s birth in contemporary terms. In the background the newborn baby is bathed by midwives while in the foreground women greet each other. The imposing palace, patterned on the Ducal Palace of Urbino, is decorated with reliefs derived from Roman sculpture. The picture is from an altarpiece commissioned in 1467 for Santa Maria della Bella in Urbino (a companion panel is in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston). In Florence, Fra Carnevale worked with Filippo Lippi; he also knew the paintings of Piero della Francesca and probably met the architect-theorist Leon Battista Alberti.

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Detail from The Birth of the Virgin

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The Annunciation

Gerard David (Netherlands, 1506)  

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Detail from the above. 

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The depth and quality of the early portraits in the Met is staggering. We photographed several, all painted in Italy and the Low Countries between 1470 and 1520. Here are our eight favorites.

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Selvaggia Sassetto

David Ghirlandaio (Italy, c. 1487)

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John III of Egmont

Anonymous (Northern Netherlands, c. 1500)

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Portrait of a Young Woman

Lorenzo di Credi (Italy, 1490 - 1500)

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Tomasso Portinari and his wife Maria Maddelena Baroncelli

Hans Memling (Netherlands, c. 1470)

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Portrait of an Old Man

Hans Memling (Netherlands, c. 1470)

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Saint Justine of Padua

Bartolomeo Montagna (Italy, 1490s)

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Portrait of a Woman

Quinten Massys (Netherlands, c. 1520)

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Curiosity

Gerard ter Borch (Netherlands, c. 1657)

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Woodland Road

Meindert Hobbema (Netherlands, c. 1670)

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Self-Portrait

Rembrandt van Rijn (Netherlands, c. 1660) 

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Detail from The Tame Magpie

Alessandro Magnasco (Italy, 1708 - 09)

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Merry Company on a Terrace

Jan Steen (Netherlands, c 1670) 

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Detail from Merry Company on a Terrace, with a self portrait of the artist making advances toward the young hostess who is trying to serve a slice of pie to a reveler.

Steen frequently included his own image in these raucous scenes.

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At 4:45, moments before the museum closed, we walked down the stone steps of the Met onto Fifth Avenue. It had been an inspiring visit, one we'll remember always.

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