Rectangular, on vellum, in a rectangular dark-stained fruitwood veneer frame, 41cm by 31.5cm.
The three kings kneel before the Christ Child, held towards them by a blue-habited Virgin, in a barn with other onlookers.
The composition is based upon Rubens ‘Adoration of the Magi’ painted in 1624 for the high altar of the church of St. Michael, Antwerp.
The painting appears in the 1690 Devonshire Schedule, or Deed of Gift, the inventory of an immense bequest from Elizabeth, Countess of Devonshire, née Cecil (1619-1689), to her daughter Anne, Countess of Exeter (1649-1703).
The inventory lists: ‘A picture of the Navity (sic) of our Saviour … figures by Dixon.’
