How Can this be Done: The Miracle of the Annunciation Versus the Facts of Life in Renaissance Painting

The Annunciation, observed on March 25, is the Christian celebration of the announcement by the archangel Gabriel to Mary, the mother of Jesus, that she would conceive and bear a son. The Bible records the event as follows: “And the angel came in and said to her: Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb.” Confused and afraid, Mary asked, in all innocence “How shall this be done, because I know not man?”
Indeed, how was it done? How did God enter Mary’s body? She was, after all, a virgin, so the usual entryway was closed. These questions challenged Church authorities for centuries, for the facts of life were inarguable. Renaissance painters wrestled with the conundrum, as they visualized the Annunciation in creative ways. Ultimately, artists evolved specific iconographical elements and a new sacred anatomical system, designed to accept the holy spirit and transform it into human flesh.