Van Loon’s large canvas depicts the New Testament episode in which shepherds discover the Christ Child in the manger—a subject that allowed the artist to emphasize the revelation of Christ’s divinity. Van Loon spent most of his career in Brussels and executed commissions for local churches seeking striking paintings with recognizable subjects that would reinvigorate the faith of Catholics after the Protestant Reformation. His dramatic use of shadow and light demonstrates the strong influence of Caravaggio, whose work he encountered during his sojourn in Rome. Van Loon vied for commissions from the Archduchess Isabella with Peter Paul Rubens, who worked in a markedly different, more exuberant style.

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