Landscape with the Flight into Egypt
1624
Artist, Dutch, 1576 - 1639
A spring-fed watering trough nestled among ancient ruins high in a mountainous pass has enticed a plethora of people and animals to its refreshing water. As cattle drink and sheep rest in the surrounding glade, the area buzzes with so much activity that it is easy to overlook the insignificant-looking group of travelers passing under an archway in the background. Small in scale and depicted in subdued colors, the figures seem the least important of all those present, yet they are none other than the Holy Family on the Flight into Egypt. The three shepherds near the watering trough have doffed their caps because the mysterious light shining down on them has made them realize that they are in the presence of the Christ Child.
Savery painted this scene during an extremely productive and successful period following his move to Utrecht in 1619. The exotic character of his mountainous landscapes reflects his travels in the Alps and in Bohemia during his residence at the court of Rudolph II in Prague between 1604 and 1614, but his paintings are essentially creations of his imagination. During the 1620s Savery received major commissions from the city of Utrecht, and his paintings were collected in courts throughout Europe. Although his work at this time could no longer be called innovative, his superb skills were highly valued and enabled Savery to continue to paint in his mannerist style long after artistic trends in other centers had begun to focus on more naturalistic images of the Dutch countryside.

West Building Main Floor, Gallery 44
Artwork overview
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Medium
oil on panel
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Credit Line
Gift of Robert H. and Clarice Smith, in Honor of the 50th Anniversary of the National Gallery of Art
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Dimensions
overall: 54.3 x 91.5 cm (21 3/8 x 36 in.)
framed: 71.1 x 107.6 x 5.7 cm (28 x 42 3/8 x 2 1/4 in.) -
Accession
1989.22.1
More About this Artwork
Artwork history & notes
Provenance
(Anthony Speelman, London);[1] Robert H. Smith, Washington, D.C., by 1988; (sale, Sotheby Parke Bernet, New York, 14 January 1988, no. 86, bought in); Mr. and Mrs. Robert H. Smith, Washington, D.C.; gift 1989 to NGA.
[1] In a letter of 7 September 1993 (in NGA curatorial files), Anthony Speelman wrote to Arthur K. Wheelock, Jr.: "The only provenance that I have on the Savery is that it was bought in c. 1890 in Berne by the previous owner's family..."
Associated Names
Exhibition History
1991
Art for the Nation: Gifts in Honor of the 50th Anniversary of the National Gallery of Art, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 1991, unnumbered catalogue, repro.
1998
A Collector's Cabinet, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 1998, no. 54.
Bibliography
1988
Müllenmeister, Kurt J. Roelant Savery: Kortrijk 1576–1639 Utrecht, Hofmaler Kaiser Rudolf II, in Prag: die Gemälde mit kritischem Oeuvrekatalog. Freren, 1988: 272, no. 168a, 275, repro.
1991
National Gallery of Art. Art for the Nation: Gifts in Honor of the 50th Anniversary of the National Gallery of Art. Exh. cat. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1991: 56-57, color repro.
Kopper, Philip. America's National Gallery of Art: A Gift to the Nation. New York, 1991: 324, color repro.
1995
Wheelock, Arthur K., Jr. Dutch Paintings of the Seventeenth Century. The Collections of the National Gallery of Art Systematic Catalogue. Washington, 1995: 360-363, color repro. 361.
1996
Gifford, E. Melanie. "Jan van Goyen en de techniek van het naturalistische landschap." In Jan van Goyen. Edited by Christiaan Vogelaar. Exh. cat. Stedelijk Museum De Lakenhal, Leiden. Zwolle, 1996: 70-79.
1998
Wheelock, Arthur K., Jr. A Collector's Cabinet. Exh. cat. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1998: 68, no. 54, repro.
Inscriptions
lower left: .ROELANT / SAVERY FE / 1624
Wikidata ID
Q20177035