Samson Threatening His Father-In-Law

Samson Threatening His Father-In-Law is a 1635 oil-on-canvas painting by Rembrandt, now in the Gemäldegalerie, Berlin.[1] It depicts the Biblical story of Samson, who has returned home after an absence to find that his father-in-law has given away Samson's Philistine wife to another man.[2] Samson's reaction was to set fire to the crops in the Philistines' fields.

Samson threatens his father-in-law
Samson threatening his father-in-law
ArtistRembrandt Edit this on Wikidata
Year1635
Mediumoil paint, canvas
Dimensions158.5 cm (62.4 in) × 130.5, 131 cm (51.4, 51.6 in)
LocationSanssouci Picture Gallery
CollectionGemäldegalerie, Sanssouci Picture Gallery, Jacques Goudstikker collection Edit this on Wikidata
IdentifiersRKDimages ID: 48076
Bildindex der Kunst und Architektur ID (deprecated): 02552488

The painting's narrative subject is "virtually without precedent in Dutch art" according to art historian Gary Schwartz, who says that the painting may have been commissioned by Frederick William, Elector of Brandenburg, and that the bellicose subject may allude to a contemporary event: the fighting in Kleve between Spain and the Dutch Republic during the Eighty Years' War.[3]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Simson bedroht seinen Schwiegervater". Staatliche Museen zu Berlin (Berlin State Museums) (in German). Retrieved 2024-05-08.
  2. ^ Schwartz, Gary (1985). Rembrandt: His Life, His Paintings. London: Penguin. p. 177. ISBN 0-14-015766-2
  3. ^ Schwartz, Gary (1985). Rembrandt: His Life, His Paintings. London: Penguin. pp. 177–180. ISBN 0-14-015766-2