Annunciation in the presence of Saint Julian

This painting, tempera on panel, was made by Filippo Lippi in his workshop between 1460 and 1465. 
In this small artwork, 73 centimetres high by 48 centimetres long, is depicted the peaceful and composed scene of the angel’s announcement to Mary, who receives it with her hands joined together. Mary looks towards St Julian, the protector of travellers and hospitals, who stands behind the winged figure to the left of her.
An elegant setting for the scene is adorned with mixed marble and coffered ceilings and is divided by a double archway and an Ionic capital atop a black marble column. Through the window behind Mary, one can see a garden with trees and a cypress, at sunrise. It may be a reminder of the Annunciation marking the beginning of the Christian era.
Destined for private devotion, this artwork is an example of a successful creation that was repeated several times in Lippi’s workshop. There are a number of elements that recall the altarpiece with the Madonna of the Girdle made for the monastery of Saint Margaret and exhibited in this same museum room, which was begun by Lippi and completed by his workshop with the assistance of Fra' Diamante.
It was common practice in Renaissance workshops for students to collaborate in the execution of the works of the master according to their level of training, sometimes even making copies of those works the master had created, which were often commissioned for private devotion. Even in the case of this artwork, there are at least two other copies of the workshop: the two versions, of lesser quality, are kept in Prato's Museo dell'Opera del Duomo and in Avignon's Musée du Petit Palais.