The floor at the east end of King’s College Chapel has been lowered to enable Rubens painting, the ‘Adoration of the Magi’ to be displayed beneath the great East Window.
This powerful masterpiece was painted by Sir Peter Paul Rubens in 1634 for the convent of the White Nuns at Louvain in Belgium, and was subsequently acquired by the Marquess of Lansdown when the Convent was suppressed in 1783. It came into the possession of the Grosvenor family and, in 1959, was sold at auction (for a the world record price). It was presented to the College in 1961 by the purchaser, Major A E Allnatt, who wished that it should again be an altar-piece in a great church.*
*From a guide to King’s College Chapel, Cambridge
i agree with then lowering the altar Cherie… the celebrant would have an easier time to kneel down before this magnificent painting….peter:)
It is a lovely setting to kneel and celebrate
it is a lovely painting and i like your framing below the stained glass, CP.
Thanks Ayush
It truly is magnificent , Cherry. I love that someone had the foresight to give it a new home.
I found the story amazing
What a fantastic display for a fantastic painting.
It looks perfect where it is placed beneath the window. I was enjoying the painting so much I forgot to photograph the window!!!
I didn’t realise that this painting was here, Cherie
It is well worth a look if you get the opportunity.
This is fabulous and a great place for display. I just did a google and found out is quite big, I already thought so because of the scale with the candlesticks. (251 cm × 338 cm (99 in × 133 in) I can see why it was sold for that kind of money.
I love that the benefactor bought it and placed it in a fitting place to display it
I hope they don’t charge people money to see this masterpiece!
Of course they do
He he.. They shouldn’t really.
Since it was donated by the Grosvenor family.
Well strictly speaking they are charging to enter the grounds not the chapel
How terrible when a world treasure goes into private hands and gets locked away so that only one family (and their friends) can see it. But how super that it was presented to the College by someone who wanted it to be an altar-piece that everyone could see. Rubens was a genius.
It takes just one man with vision to be able to liberate and share the beauty