Annunciation

Hans Memling painted the Annunciation around 1467 as the outer wings of the Crabbe Triptych, commissioned by Jan Crabbe, abbot of Ten Duinen Abbey in Koksijde. The two panels show the angel Gabriel and the Virgin Mary in a "living grisaille" technique. Memling painted their robes entirely in white to mimic stone sculpture, but added color to their faces, hands, and the symbolic lily.

This approach was innovative for its time. Most grisaille altarpiece exteriors stayed completely monochrome. By animating his figures with flesh tones, Memling brought them startlingly to life. The composition borrows from Rogier van der Weyden's Columba Altarpiece, suggesting Memling may have assisted in that earlier work.

The triptych was later separated. The central panel went to Vicenza, the inner wings to the Morgan Library in New York, and these Annunciation panels to the Groeningemuseum in Bruges. Each panel measures 83 by 26.5 centimeters. The Belgian state acquired them in 1952 after wartime complications.