Unconventional Nativity composition, mainly as if from the dark radiating figures arranged as if according to various intentions from The Slovak National Gallery painting represent quite demanding interpretational enigma. Turned to the child in magnificent profile, a half figure of Virgin Mary dominates the foreground. The napkins placed before her do not reflect only genre motif, they balance light accent of the naked new-born child in the composition. Mary´s sight draws viewer´s attention towards the child surrounded by other figures – angels who help with holding him, an elderly woman who is probably St. Anne, mother of Virgin Mary and both elderly men from the background seem to symbolize St. Joseph and St. Joachim, Mary’s father, or possibly shepherds. Under certain circumstances, participants of this scene could correspond to those of the birth of Virgin Mary. However, owing to Baroque painting which frequently used similar schemes to capture both themes, it is difficult to determine it. Moreover, for Nativity speaks inscription Gloria in Excelsis Deo (Glory to the God in the highest) which the angel above Mary’s figure points at. It is the first line of the famous hymn sang during Nativity liturgy (under St. Lucas Gospel 2,14; where the Annunciation to the shepherds is directly discussed).  The scene then comes back to the beginning in a certain spiral a viewer is recurrently drawn into the story by lightly modelled hands of the figural composition pointing either at the child or the inscription. This almost theatrical way of “persuading by painting” together with ingenious light and dark contrasts cooperate to form not only primary meaning of the painting but foreshadow greater requirements of the client, as well.
Although he is unknown, Katarína Chmelnicová (2008) seeks him in the circle of Szapary family because it is in their manor house in Orlové near Považské Podhradie where the canvas comes from, and where a similar SNG painting – St. Joseph with the child signed by Austrian artist Josef Ignaz Mildorfer also originates. Except for Vienna and Lower Austria he worked also in Morava and Slovakia, for instance: in Holíč and Marianka during his last years. These facts together with the style quality of the painting from Bratislava became the reason for assigning this work of art to Mildorfer.

Dušan Buran

The stamps are with advent perfume.