The Adoration of the Magi shows a nocturnal scene with Mary bending over the Child while the gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh are presented by the three kings Melchior, Caspar and Balthazar with their entourages in procession. The robes of Melchior and Caspar are held by boys, continuing an Antwerp pictorial tradition started by
Peter Paul Rubens. Caspar is holding the
famous Amsterdam guild cup, which both reveals the Amsterdam origins of the painting and also raises the question if the other metal objects presented were equally famous. According to the museum, the painting's provenance goes back only as far as the heirs of Joan de Vries of Amsterdam in 1708. Behind and above them, centrally placed in the composition, is the magi Balthazar, standing under a parasol with the star of Bethlehem shining above him. The painting was painted soon after the time when Koninck was a pupil of
Rembrandt. Many aspects of the fashions and poses in the composition are taken directly from earlier Rembrandt paintings, such as his 1634 version of the same subject, now in the Hermitage: File:Rembrandt The Adoration of the Magi.jpg|
The Adoration of the Magi, 1634, by Rembrandt ==Provenance==