Neapolitan Crèche

The Art Institute’s spectacular 18th-century Neapolitan crèche returns once again this holiday season.

This crèche, or Nativity scene, tells the story of Jesus Christ’s birth using more than 200 painted terracotta figures staged in an elaborate environment inspired by 18th-century Naples. The upper register of the crèche contains the main characters of the Nativity—the Holy Family (Mary, Joseph, and Jesus) and the Three Wise Men, along with angels and shepherds. Surrounding them are scenes of Neapolitan daily life, including a raucous tavern, a bucolic pasture, and a street crowded with vendors.