National Gallery of Art :: The Collection :: Moses Striking the Rock
  • Overview
  • Inscription
  • Provenance
  • Exhibition History
  • Bibliography

Overview

Wtewael's lifelong commitment to mannerism is apparent in this depiction of Moses Striking the Rock. This miraculous event, drawn from the Old Testament Book of Numbers, occurred during the Israelites' journey out of Egypt. While in the wilderness, the Israelites suffered from a critical lack of water. God miraculously granted them relief through the actions of Moses who, accompanied by his brother Aaron, struck the rock and produced water.

The mannerists' use of alternating patterns of light and dark, elongated figures, contorted poses, and pastel colors created elegant, yet extremely artificial, scenes. Wtewael here depicts many figures who feverishly use pots, pans, and other drinking utensils to capture the precious water.

This religious subject was a favorite one for mannerist artists. Such paintings were often produced in cooperation with humanist scholars and had allegorical implications. Moses, in his role as leader of the Israelites, was often seen as a forerunner of Christ; more specifically for the Dutch, however, were the parallels that could be drawn between Moses and their national hero William the Silent. Both led their people against an oppressive foreign rule, but neither of them lived to witness the formation of the new nation they had foreseen.

Inscription

lower left: J Wtt / wael fecit / Anno 1624

Marks and Labels

null

Provenance

(Sale, Foster, London, 29 November 1833, no. 29, as by J. de Wael); Thomas Chawner, Esq. [d. 1851], London and Addlestone, near Chertsey, Surrey; (his estate sale, Foster, London, 16 June 1852, no. 97); Chance.[1] H. Charles Erhardt, Esq., London, by 1892; (sale, Christie, Manson & Woods, London, 19-22 June 1931, no. 273, as by J.B. de Wael); "Leffer" or "Lepper."[2] Francis Howard, Esq., Dorking, by 1955; (sale, Christie, Manson & Woods, London, 25 November 1955, no. 52, as by J.B. de Wael); (Arcade Gallery, London); sold to Vincent Korda, London; repurchased 1967 by (Arcade Gallery, London);[3] sold 1967 to (Edward Speelman, London);[4] purchased 31 January 1972 by NGA.

[1] Burton Fredericksen (letter of 2 January 2003 and e-mail of 17 July 2003, in NGA curatorial files) has kindly provided the information about the Foster sales of 1833 and 1852, and the buyers at each sale, Thomas Chawner and "Chance." A label on the back of the painting, which reads "J. de Wael / 29 Moses striking the Rock," matches the information from the 1833 sale catalogue.

[2] Christie's in London no longer has its records from 1931 and thus was not able to help clarify the buyer's name. See correspondence from 25 September 1986 and 7 November 1986, in NGA curatorial files.

[3] The Arcade Gallery, in a letter of 3 March 1987 in NGA curatorial files, says that they sold the painting "almost immediately" to Korda after they purchased it at the 1955 sale, repurchased it in 1967, and then sold it during the exhibition in November and December of the same year, in which the painting appeared.

[4] A letter from Anthony Speelman of 23 January 1987, in NGA curatorial files, indicates that the Edward Speelman firm had bought Moses Striking the Rock from Vincent Korda prior to their selling it to the National Gallery of Art.

Exhibition History

1892
A Loan Exhibition of Pictures, Art Gallery of the Corporation of London, Guildhall, 1892, no. 99, as by Jan Baptist de Wael.
1967
Recent Acquisitions: Mannerist and Baroque Paintings, Arcade Gallery, London, 1967, no. 23.
1980
Gods, Saints and Heroes: Dutch Painting in the Age of Rembrandt, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.; Detroit Institute of Arts; Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, 1980, fig. 1 (shown only in Washington).
1998
A Collector's Cabinet, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 1998, no. 66.
2000
Landscape of the Bible: Sacred Scenes in European Master Paintings, The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, 2000-2001, no. 13, repro.

Bibliography

1892
A Loan Exhibition of Pictures. Exh. cat. Art Gallery of the Corporation of London, Guildhall, 1892: no. 99, as by Jan Baptist de Wael.
1974
Lowenthal, Anne Walter. "Wtewael's Moses and Dutch Mannerism." Studies in the History of Art 6 (1974): 124-141, fig. 1.
1975
European Paintings: An Illustrated Summary Catalogue. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1975: 358, repro.
1980
Blankert, Albert et al. Gods, Saints, and Heroes: Dutch Painting in the Age of Rembrandt. Exh. cat. National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.; Detroit Institute of Arts; Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam. Washington, D.C., 1980: 46-47, fig. 1.
1983
Hofmann, Werner. "Die Reformation und die Kunst der Niederlande." In Luther und die Folgen für die Kunst. Exh. cat. Hamburger Kunsthalle, Hamburg. Munich, 1983: 314-315, fig. 15.
1983
Sutton, Peter C., with an appendix by Marigene H. Butler. "Jan Steen: Comedy and Admonition." Bulletin of the Philadelphia Museum of Art 78 (Winter 1982/Spring 1983): 18.
1984
Wheelock, Jr., Arthur K. Dutch Painting in the National Gallery of Art. Washington, D.C., 1984: 9, repro.
1985
Bosque, Andrée de. Mythologie et maniérisme aux Pays-Bas, 1570-1630: peinture, dessins. Antwerp, 1985: 94, 95, repro.
1985
European Paintings: An Illustrated Catalogue. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1985: 440, repro.
1986
Lowenthal, Anne Walter. Joachim Wtewael and Dutch Mannerism. Doornspijk, 1986: 41, 50-51, 55, cat. A-88, 151-152, color pl. 22.
1986
Sutton, Peter C. A Guide to Dutch Art in America. Grand Rapids and Kampen, 1986: 454.
1986
Wansink, Christina J. A. "A 'Mercury, Argus and Io' from Utrecht." Hoogsteder-Naumann Mercury 4 (1986): 3, 4, fig. 2.
1992
National Gallery of Art, Washington. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1992: 122, repro.
1995
Wheelock, Jr., Arthur K. Dutch Paintings of the Seventeenth Century. The Collections of the National Gallery of Art Systematic Catalogue. Washington, D.C., 1995: 394-398, color repro. 395.
2012
Tummers, Anna. The Eye of the Connoisseur: Authenticating Paintings by Rembrandt and His Contemporaries. Amsterdam, 2012: 204, 205, color fig. 128.

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