# Annunciation to the Shepherds [View the canonical artwork record]() ## Artwork - Artist: [GADDI, Taddeo]() - Date: 1301-1350 - Technique: Fresco ## Commentary Annunciation to the Shepherds c. 1330 Fresco Cappella Baroncelli, Santa Croce, Florence This scene is located at middle left on the south wall. It is a nocturnal scene presented in a unique way: the golden yellow glow of the cloud that surrounds the hovering angel bathes the shepherds and their resting place in a bright light that even reaches the trees that crown the mountain peak, while the remainder of the pictorial space is filled with semidarkness. Although the light source is a supernatural one, it produces a natural effect. Gaddi was much involved in the study of light effects, perhaps as a consequence of the solar eclipses which repeatedly occurred in the 1330s. Studying the solar eclipse in 1339, Gaddi acquired a serious eye illness. ## Related artworks - [Adoration of the Magi]() - [Allegory of the Cross]() - [Assumption of St John the Evangelist]() - [Crucifix]() - [Crucifixion]() - [David]() - [Entombment]() - [Expulsion of Joachim from the Temple]() - [Isaiah]() - [Joachim and Anne Meeting at the Golden Gate]() - [Last Supper, Tree of Life and Four Miracle Scenes]() - [Last Supper, Tree of Life and Four Miracle Scenes]() ## Attribution [Web Gallery of Art]()