Annunciation

c. 1455 - Fresco, 329 x 193 cm - San Francesco, Arezzo

The subject for this painting has nothing to do with the legend: it was Piero's idea to add it. The central column introduces, here too, a classical architectural setting. The vanishing point, placed on the right behind the Virgin and not in the centre of the painting, breaks the symmetry. The light reflections show the painter's attention to the smallest details. The transparent veil on Mary's head, the pearls that decorate her garment, the wood inlays on the door and the shadows on the white marble surface are all new elements that were then developed by Piero in his later works.