Joseph and Potiphar's Wife (Rembrandt)
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| Joseph and Potiphar's wife |
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| Rembrandt van Rijn , 1655 |
| Oil on canvas |
| 113.5 × 90 cm |
| Gemäldegalerie Berlin |
Rembrandt's painting Joseph and Potiphar's Wife represents the biblical story of the same name from Gen 39.1-18 EU . It is exhibited in the Berlin Gemäldegalerie . The motif shown is widespread in 17th century painting and is preserved in many collections. In addition to the work of Rembrandt, works by Bartolomé Murillo , Carlo Cignani , Willem van Mieris and many others are known.
Rembrandt's painting follows a literary model that can be traced back to the literary work “ Jewish Antiquities ” by Flavius Josephus . In 1574 a High German translation of the Jewish antiquities was published in Strasbourg. In contrast to the biblical narrative variant, the slander scene described by Flavius Josephus includes the presence of Joseph and the mention of the marriage bed.
The Berlin painting by Rembrandt clearly refers to this narrative variant, the scenic design and the colors used impressively depict the magnificent oriental splendor.
Another similar version from Rembrandt's workshop is preserved in the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC
Provenance
The work was acquired in 1883 by Sir John Neeld (Grittleton House, Wiltshire) through the mediation of the art dealer Charles Sedelmeyer , Paris.
literature
- Christian Tümpel among others: In the light of Rembrandt. The Old Testament in the Golden Age of Dutch Art. Münster, Amsterdam, Jerusalem 1994, p. 200, cat.no.24.
- Christian Tümpel: Rembrandt. Myth and Method. Amsterdam 1986, p. 391.
- Rüdiger Klessmann : On the X-ray findings of the Potiphar image in Berlin. In: New Contributions to Rembrandt Research. Berlin 1973, pp. 44-49.
- Horst Gerson : Rembrandt. Paintings. London 1968, p. 114 f.
Web links
- The work at smb-digital