Mariä Verkündigung mit dem heiligen Emygdius

The Annunciation, with Saint Emidius

This painting was made for the Franciscan church of the Annunciation in Ascoli Piceno. Unusually the Archangel Gabriel is accompanied by Saint Emidius, patron saint of Ascoli Piceno (a model of which he holds), and the event takes place in a busy street.

This is explained by the fact that on 25 March (the Feast of the Annunciation) in 1482 the town was granted limited rights of self-government by the Pope. The prominent inscription here, Libertas Ecclesiastica ('Freedom of the Church'), is the title of the papal edict. As the dove of the Holy Spirit reaches the Virgin Mary, a message delivered by carrier pigeon is read by the citizen on the bridge in the middle distance.