Triptych of the Nativity

Why this icon

As Christmas approached, I wanted to write an icon of the Nativity. My teacher, Piet van der Ploeg, had created a triptych whose vivid colours immediately appealed to me. I drew inspiration from this model to write this joyful, warm icon, which can find a place in the home at Christmas and offer another way of depicting the Nativity, in place of a traditional crib.

About this icon

This triptych unfolds the mystery of the Nativity across three hinged panels. Rather than showing a single moment, it brings together several scenes for contemplation, in the tradition of Christian iconography.

At the centre, Mary appears within an almond-shaped mandorla, holding the Child close to her face. In Christian iconography, the mandorla is an aureole surrounding the whole figure: it signifies divine glory and the presence of a mystery beyond the visible world. Here, it invites us to contemplate Mary and the Child within the mystery of the Incarnation, God becoming human. Their tender closeness gives the composition its human warmth. Behind them, the dark cave contrasts with the light descending from heaven: it can be read as an image of Christ entering the darkness of the world. The manger, the ox and the ass recall the humble setting of his birth, while the rocks and starry sky surround this intimate encounter.

On the left wing, three angels incline towards the Mother and Child. Below them, Joseph sits apart, his cheek resting on his hand. His thoughtful posture invites us to consider the mystery he is called to receive in faith.

The right wing answers the left with three more angels. Beneath them, two women care for the newborn Jesus: one holds him beside a basin while the other pours water. This traditional scene of the Child’s bath, absent from the canonical Gospels, stresses his true humanity. Jesus shares the vulnerability and ordinary care of every newborn. His appearance in both the central scene and the bath brings successive moments together within one image.

When the wings are closed, the Annunciation appears: Gabriel approaches from the left, addressing Mary on the right. The ray descending towards her recalls the action of the Holy Spirit. Closing and opening the triptych thus links the announcement to its fulfilment, from Mary’s assent to the birth of Christ.

Triptychs were widely used in the Middle Ages, both in the Byzantine world and in western Europe. Their three-part structure placed a principal image at the centre and allowed related scenes or saints to accompany it. The folding wings protected the inner images; small examples could also be carried and opened for prayer in a home, chapel or while travelling.

In churches, larger winged altarpieces offered different views when open or closed, sometimes following the liturgical calendar. Their appeal was therefore practical, narrative and spiritual: several images formed a coherent whole, and opening the wings became a moment of revelation. Here, that movement invites the viewer to pass from expectation to the joy of the Nativity.