The short passage in Matthew (2:1–12) about the Magi who travelled from the East to find the Christ child provided few details for artists who needed to depict this scene and for theologians who tried to understand it. Some turned to earlier texts, especially Isaiah 60:1–6, which seemed to provide not only a prefiguration of the birth of the Messiah but also precious information about the status and origins of the wise men.

Matthew’s reference to the Magian gifts of ‘gold, frankincense, and myrrh’ established the convention, at least in the Western Church, that the Wise Men numbered three. Most importantly, this passage allowed for the identification of this trio with the kings who, as envisioned by Isaiah, ‘shall come […] to the brightness of your rising’, and ‘shall bring gold and frankincense’ (Isaiah 60:3, 6). Though the Bible never suggests that these Magi or Wise Men were royal, they were presented as models for kings by St Augustine (354–430 CE) and identified as kings by Caesarius of Arles (468/470–542 CE) and other Early Christian sources (Powell 2000). Paintings like those in this exhibition (and countless others) helped reinforce this regal association.

Isaiah’s account introduced a triumphant tone to the biblical narrative and invited readers since Christ’s birth to imagine worldly rulers coming to pay homage to the infant who is also king of kings. Meanwhile, ancient Roman reliefs depicting imperial triumphs provided a model for Western artists as they created a new iconography for this scene. Isaiah’s text encouraged painters to represent royal visitors in all their glittering riches, thus providing insight into the ideal presentations of kingly attire and comportment.

In all three paintings in this exhibition, the king closest to Christ appears kneeling after removing his crown, to show his submission to a more powerful leader. Typically, as seen in the two examples from the 1300s and 1500s, this king is also the oldest, indicated by his white beard, and has already presented his gift.

Isaiah’s reference to the dawn, combined with Matthew’s discussion of the star, and the theme of joyful homage, is suggested by the glowing backgrounds found in so many Adoration paintings, including those by Edward Burne-Jones and the anonymous Italian artist. Very often, as in this last-mentioned work, representations of the Adoration of the Kings also depict camels, a detail mentioned not in the Gospels but Isaiah 60:6. Importantly, the prophet specified that the camels came from Midian, Ephah, and Sheba, and the sheep and rams from Kedar and Nebaioth. In a highly influential commentary on this passage from the fourth century, Eusebius of Caesarea (c.260/265–339 CE) explained that Isaiah thus ‘alluded to the nations of other races and tribes’ (Commentary on Isaiah, 60.6–7).

Similar interpretations led to the pervasive belief in medieval and early modern Europe that the Three Kings came from different geographic areas; one of them was often described and represented as Black. In part, this is because Sheba was traditionally associated with Africa, though especially before the Age of Exploration, the name and location of this area was often confused with India. Many Europeans in the early 1500s identified the Americas with India, and some placed Sheba in the New World; this might explain why a handful of paintings made in Europe and South America, including our example in Portugal, shows one king as an Amerindian.

Representations of Black kings and attendants appear in countless Renaissance paintings, especially after 1450. These royal Africans, but also the Black visitors in the Italian work shown here, probably reflect that widespread conviction that Ethiopia was ruled by a rich and powerful king named Prester John. This Christian ruler, thought to be a descendant of the Black Magus, was sought by Popes as a key ally in their fight against Muslims, and thus had a massive impact on European understandings of Ethiopians.

In his commentary on Isaiah, Theodoret of Cyrus (c.393–c.458/466 CE) wrote that the Church ‘gathers its children from all the nations’ and is ‘seized with amazement in contemplating the clouds of people who hasten towards it’ (Commentary on Isaiah, 19.60.4–8). The paintings in this exhibition, with their depictions of children from so many nations, convey and stimulate a similar amazement. Like Isaiah’s text, they invite viewers to reflect on the spiritual devotions of peoples all around the world.

References

Elowsky, Joel C. (ed.), Armstrong, Jonathan J. (trans.). 2013. Eusebius of Caesarea: Commentary on Isaiah, Ancient Christian Texts (Downers Grove: IVP), pp. 293–94

Elliott, Mark W. (ed.). 2007. Isaiah 40–66, Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture, Old Testament 11 (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press), p. 230

Kaplan, Paul H. D. 1985. The Rise of the Black Magus in Western Art (Ann Arbor: UMI Research Press)

Sawyer, John F. A. 2017. Isaiah Through the Centuries (Chicester: Wiley-Blackwell)

Trexler, Richard. 1997. The Journey of the Magi: Meanings in the History of a Christian Story (Princeton: Princeton University Press)