In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, to visit a young virgin who was engaged to a man named Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. The angel came to her and said: “Rejoice, full of grace, the Lord is with you.” Mary was deeply troubled by these words and wondered what this greeting could mean. But the angel said to her: “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. You will conceive in your womb and give birth to a son, and you shall name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David. He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and his kingdom will never end.” Then Mary said to the angel: “How can this be, since I am a virgin?” The angel answered: “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore, the holy child to be born will be called the Son of God. And behold, your relative Elizabeth, in her old age, has also conceived a son, and she who was said to be barren is now in her sixth month. For nothing is impossible with God.” Then Mary said: “I am the servant of the Lord. Let it be done to me according to your word.” Then the angel departed. (Luke 1,26–38)

In this scene, we see the Archangel Gabriel announcing to the Virgin Mary that she will conceive the Son of God, Jesus, as recounted in the Gospel of Luke. This is an important scene for the Christian theology as this is when God sends Gabriel to announce that the fulfillment of Scripture has arrived and that a new covenant is to be established through the Incarnation of God in Mary's womb.

Following the iconographic tradition, Mary appears kneeling before a prie-dieu, on which rests a book whose reading has just been interrupted; according to tradition, Mary was meditating on the prophecy of Isaiah: “Behold, the virgin shall conceive.” This scene includes a vase holding a branch of white lilies; this is not simply decorative, it symbolizes the virginal state and purity of Mary.