Joachim and Anne Meeting at the Golden Gate [SEP] creator
Joachim and Anne Meeting at the Golden Gate
Joachim and Anne Meeting at the Golden Gate is a narrative of the parents of the Virgin Mary, Joachim and Anne meeting at the Golden Gate of Jerusalem, upon learning that she will bear a child. It is not in the New Testament, but is in the Protoevangelium of James and other apocryphal accounts; however it was tolerated by the Church. It featured in Voragine's "Golden Legend" (c.1260) and other popular accounts. The story was a popular subject in
Joachim and Anne to promise them a child. 
Joachim later returned to Jerusalem and embraced Anne at the city gate, located in the Walls of Jerusalem. An ancient belief held that a child born of an elderly mother who had given up hope of having offspring was destined for great things. Parallels occur in the Old Testament in the case of Hannah, mother of Samuel.
Joachim and Anne Meeting at the Golden Gate was a popular subject in artistic renditions of the life of the Virgin.
The cycle of legends