Adoration of the Shepherds (Poussin)

The Adoration of the Shepherds is a painting of 1633–34 by the French painter Nicolas Poussin (1594–1665), now in the National Gallery, London (Room 19). It is in oils on canvas, and measures 97.2 by 74 centimetres (38.3 in × 29.1 in) (with uneven edges). Unusually for Poussin, it is signed "N. Pusin.fe" ["fecit"] on the stone at lower right. By 1637, soon after it was painted, it was owned by Cardinal Gian Carlo de' Medici (1611–1663), the second son of Grand Duke Cosimo II of Tuscany and was placed in his villa outside Florence.

It belongs to a group of paintings with a predominately "coppery" colour scheme, from which its dating mainly derives. Classicising elements have been added to the usual figures.

The painting was evidently well-regarded, and 20 painted copies are recorded from approximately the next century, as well as seven print versions made between the 1660s and 1813. There are a number of drawings, some showing what appear to be early thoughts about the composition, though some may not be by Poussin or were created before the painting. As is often the case with Poussin, elements of the painting reflect the works of other artists, including Raphael.