Ruhe auf der Flucht nach Ägypten

Gerard David painted this around 1515 in Bruges, and he treats a moment the Gospel barely mentions, the family pausing on their long road into Egypt. Mary sits in front of a deep wood, feeding the Christ child, dressed less like a queen of heaven than a Flemish mother resting on a journey. In the trees behind her David tucks in a small detail the owners could linger over, Joseph and the donkey stopping among the branches. He painted this subject several times, for churches and for private homes, and versions of it now hang in Madrid, Washington and New York. What sets this one apart is that quiet second scene folded into the landscape.