The Holy Kinship
by SELLAER, Vincent, Oil on panel, 95 x 109 cm
Watching over the Virgin and child are the figures of St Joseph and St Elizabeth. The presence of St Elizabeth suggests that one of the three other infants may be her son St John the Baptist, most likely the boy dressed in green standing closest to Christ. The other two infants are likely to be cousins of Christ, although their exact identities cannot be identified due to the lack of attributes.
The theme of The Holy Kinship was one of Sellaer’s favoured subjects, and one which he depicted on several occasions. Some depictions have almost identical compositions to the present work.