| Artist | |
|---|---|
| Culture | Netherlandish |
| Date | mid-16th century |
| Object type | painting |
| Medium, technique | oil on oak |
| Dimensions | 119 × 163 cm |
| Inventory number | 1049 |
| Collection | Old Master Paintings |
| On view | Museum of Fine Arts, First Floor, European Art 1250-1600, Gallery XXII |
Jan van Hemessen of Antwerp was an important Netherlandish master in the second quarter of the sixteenth century. He often transposed subjects into scenes of contemporary everyday life, thus lending his works strong moralistic overtones.
Like so many artists from the same period, he absorbed the influence of the Italian Renaissance and mannerism, particularly in the formation of his figures. In this large panel painting, for instance, the characters from the dramatic Old Testament episode is portrayed with monumentality, while the bodies are modelled with the sfumato technique invented by Leonardo da Vinci.
Pigler, Andor, Katalog der Galerie Alter Meister, 1-2. Museum der Bildenden Künste, Szépművészeti Múzeum, Budapest. 2, Akadémiai Kiadó, Budapest, 1967, p. 308.
This record is subject to revision due to ongoing research.
