Lot and his Daughters

Hendrick Goltzius, 1616

God decided to destroy the sinful city of Sodom, sparing only the righteous Lot and his family. Because Lot’s daughters were afraid of remaining childless – all of the men had perished – they got their father drunk and seduced him. Goltzius creates a striking contrast between the sunburned skin of the elderly Lot and the smooth skin of his two daughters.

  • Artwork typepainting
  • Object numberSK-A-4866
  • Dimensionsheight 140 cm x width 204 cm
  • Physical characteristicsoil on canvas

Identification

  • Title(s)

    • Lot and his Daughters
    • Loth and his Daughters
  • Object type

  • Object number

    SK-A-4866

  • Description

    Lot en zijn dochters. Gezeten onder bomen bij rotsen verleiden de dochters van Lot hun vader. Alledrie figuren zijn naakt en zittend of liggend op de grond voorgesteld. De dochter links houdt een wijnkan in de hand, Lot heeft een drinkschaal in de rechterhand. Linksonder een tafeltje met kaas en brood, een hondje zit ernaast. Rechts op de achtergrond branden Sodom en Gomorra, met daarvoor de vrouw van Lot die in een zoutpilaar was veranderd. Tussen de rotsen loopt een vos.

  • Inscriptions / marks

    signature and date: ‘HG 1616’


Creation

  • Creation

    painter: Hendrick Goltzius

  • Dating

    1616

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Material and technique

  • Physical description

    oil on canvas

  • Dimensions

    height 140 cm x width 204 cm


This work is about

  • Subject


Acquisition and rights

  • Credit line

    Purchased with the support of the Vereniging Rembrandt, with additional funding from the Prins Bernhard Fonds, the Rijksmuseum-Stichting, the G.H. Sant Bequest and the ministerie van WVC

  • Acquisition

    purchase 1989

  • Copyright

  • Provenance

    …; anonymous sale, Munich (Helbing), 20 October 1919, no. 157; …; collection Bieberfeld;{Van Thiel 1989a, p. 137.} …; collection Dr J.F. Kapp;{Van Thiel 1989a, p. 137.} …; purchased from Hans Franz Himmer, Detroit, by Edward Frohlich, 1920's;{Note RMA.} his son, Edward P. Frohlich (1918-2002), Grosse Point, Michigan;{Note RMA.} the Montgommery Gallery, San Francisco, 1987;{Amsterdam 2003, pp. 304-305, no. 112.} from whom, fl.3,650,000, to the museum, through the mediation of J.F. van Santen, with support from the Vereniging Rembrandt, the Rijksmuseum Stichting and the Ministerie van Welzijn, Volksgezondheid en Cultuur, 1989

  • Remarks

    Please note that this provenance was formulated with a special focus on provenance research for the years 1933-45 and could therefore be incomplete. There may be more (mostly earlier) provenance information known in the museum. In case this item has an uncertain or incomplete provenance for the years 1933-45, the Rijksmuseum welcomes information and assistance in the investigation and clarification of the provenance of all works during that era.


Documentation

    • Nederlands Kunsthistorisch Jaarboek, dl. 42-43 (1991/92), p. 61, 136-138, 361, afb. 49
    • Tent.cat. Im Lichte Rembrandts. Das Alte Testament im Goldenen Zeitalter der Niederländischen Kunst, Münster (Landes Museum) 1994, p. 73
    • J.G. van Gelder, Rubens in Holland in de zeventiende eeuw, in: Nederlands Kunsthistorisch Jaarboek vol. 3 (1950/51), p. 119, 122, afb. 10
    • The Burlington Magazine vol. CXXXIV (nov. 1992), p. 760, afb. I
    • Kunstkrant Rijksmuseum nr. 3 (2003), p. 16, 17
    • Jaarverslag Vereniging Rembrandt (1989), p. 32, 33

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