The painting "Adoration of the Magi" by di Nardo portrays the three Magi approaching the baby Jesus and the Virgin Mary. However, there is much more to it than just this familiar scene from Judeo-Christian lore. When approaching this painting in order to analyze it iconographically, it is necessary to first look at all aspects of the form. If this aspect is ignored, it provides for an incomplete analysis of the painting. Once this is looked at, the iconography of the painting becomes much clearer, and it is easier to compare the painting to the actual biblical text from which...
through years of Christmas songs, and setting up the manger with Wise Men and the baby Jesus in my living room at Christmas time, I had come to believe that that there were three Wise Men. They were "three kings from Bethlehem." They visited Jesus in the manger with the cows and the sheep. This shows that what is conventionally believed is not necessarily accurate. We see this clearly in "Adoration of the Magi," which initially looks perfectly okay to the popular Judeo-Christian eye, but upon closer inspection holds many of the common misconceptions of the three Wise Men.