Adoration of the Shepherds (El Greco, Bucharest)

The Adoration of the Shepherds is a painting of the traditional subject which was painted by El Greco in 1596. It is in the European painting collection of the National Museum of Art of Romania. This unusually tall painting is a work in the group of equally tall paintings which the artist made as part of his 1596 commission known as the Doña María de Aragón Altarpiece for the Colegio de Dona Maria de Aragón in a building that is now the location of Palacio del Senado in Madrid. El Greco's signature, in Greek, may be seen on the paper in the lower left corner.

• Trompe l'oeil paper label with Greek signature, lower left

According to surviving documentation, delivery was promised by Easter of 1599, but papers show it was shipped from Toledo to Madrid in 1600 and final payment was made for the "high altar" in September of that year.

Today we know nothing about El Greco's design of the high altar, the height of original display of the paintings nor who commissioned them, since the altarpiece was deconstructed during the French occupation of Spain under Joseph Bonaparte. The original commission consisted of six paintings and six sculptures which visually embodied the idea of the Incarnation of the Son of God, reflecting the title of the chapel as well as being the subject of many theological debates in contemporary Spain. It was dismantled in the early 19th century and the sculptures are lost, while the other five paintings were moved to the Prado Museum.