Explore the Historical context of this artwork, Christ Surrounded by Singing and Music-making Angels.
The altarpiece was commissioned in 1487 by the consuls of the Spanish merchants in Bruges, Pedro, and Antonio de Nájera, to decorate the organ of the Santa María la Real of Nájera, the former pantheon of the kings of Navarre. Some of the ornaments of the 17 (larger-than-life) figures depicted bear the arms of Castile and León. The original altarpiece was huge, and the three surviving paintings were likely part of its upper tier. The central panel depicted the Assumption of the Virgin Mary.
This is a rare work in which Christ is depicted surrounded by angelic musicians. After having been abandoned for four centuries, it was bought in 1885 by an art dealer and sold to the Belgian government, which entrusted it to the Royal Museum of Fine Arts of Antwerp.  An extensive restoration campaign began in 2001. It took a total of 16 years, due partly to the huge surface area of the work and the complex nature of the treatment.
Nájera Assumption of the Virgin Mary Antonio de Nájera Bruges  Christ Santa María la Real of Nájera Royal Museum of Fine Arts of Antwerp Virgin Mary Castile and León