Annunciation (del Sarto)

Gabriel kneels at the right with his lily and points across to the Virgin, who draws back in grave surprise, two companion angels behind him and a stretch of classical ruin between (Luke 1:26-38). Andrea del Sarto - whom Vasari called the painter without errors for his flawless craft - led Florentine painting in the years after Leonardo, Michelangelo, and Raphael had all left for Rome. The soft, smoke-blended modeling is learned from Leonardo, the warm harmony of color his own. The collection follows the Annunciation across centuries, from Simone Martini to Antonello and Leonardo; here it takes on High Renaissance ease and balance.