Samuel H. Kress Collection, National Gallery of Art
In 1975, Thompson’s traditional stamp design was issued along with the popular Louis Prang “Christmas card” stamp. Domenico Ghirlandaio likely painted the “Madonna and Child” image the stamp was based upon, though it shows some similarities to paintings by Andrea del Verrocchio, who probably trained Ghirlandaio (Brown 2003). Ghirlandaio painted frescos most often, but also a number of tempera paintings like this one. Part of the Samuel H. Kress collection, this painting represented another choice of an Italian Renaissance religious art, among a series of American artworks depicted on Christmas stamps in 1974, 1976, and 1977 for the American bicentennial.
