Scripture · Luke 1:39-40
Matthew 2:11
Adoration of the Magi
On coming to the house, they saw the Child with His mother Mary, and they fell down and worshiped Him. Then they opened their treasures and presented Him with gifts of gold and frankincense and myrrh.
The old king brings his face to the child's foot. Above him, a comet crosses the blue sky; below, his discarded crown rests on the ground beside his kneeling body.
About the artwork
Giotto gives the approach a clear physical order. The waiting kings stand upright with their gifts, while the nearest visitor bends until his face meets the child Mary supports. Camels and an attendant at the left preserve the arrival's foreign, traveling character. The broad silhouettes make these actions legible across the chapel wall.
Some of what we see also records the fresco's survival. Padua's museum explains that a wooden support painted over the angel behind Mary has lost its surface color, revealing the face beneath. Much of Mary's blue mantle has also disappeared. The pale and exposed passages are not all deliberate choices of color: the painting's present appearance includes losses accumulated over time.
Featured in: 20 Famous Adoration of the Magi Paintings
What does Matthew 2:11 mean?
Matthew 2:11 brings the Magi's journey to worship and gift-giving. Giotto makes the bow almost a bodily explanation of the word: the visitor relinquishes height and crown to approach the infant. The comet supplies a vivid form for the guiding star described earlier in the chapter. The light above explains how the travelers arrived; the contact below reveals whom they came to honor.
Sources
Padua Civic Museums: L’Adorazione dei Magi. Exact fresco entry, including the lost surface paint and exposed angel.
Matthew 2 — Berean Standard Bible. The paired text read in its surrounding chapter.
Also from Matthew:Marriage of the VirginThe Dream of Saint Joseph
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