The Rest on the Flight into Egypt
Gerard Davidc. 1510
National Gallery of Art, Washington DC
Washington, DC, United States
The short biblical account of the Flight into Egypt (Matt. 2:13–14) was elaborated upon by Early Christian and medieval theologians. In one of these apocryphal legends, the weary family paused during their journey after three days of travel. The Virgin longed for food, but the date–palm branches were too high for Joseph to pick any fruit. Thereupon Jesus commanded the tree to lower its branches. David deemphasized this miracle by giving Joseph a sturdy stick and by replacing the date palm with a Flemish chestnut tree, but a sixteenth–century audience would have remembered the apocryphal story. There are also indications of the special significance of the family: the Madonna wears robes in her symbolic colors of red and blue; fine rays of golden light emanate from the mother's head and that of the child; and the bunch of grapes held by the Madonna is a well–known symbol of the Eucharist.
David created a mood of calm equilibrium. The Madonna and Child are centrally placed, while receding diagonals and alternating bands of light and dark skillfully lead back into the landscape and harmoniously relate the figures to their surroundings. The predominance of the restful color blue throughout the composition unifies the work. All in all, _The Rest on the Flight into Egypt_ is one of Gerard David's loveliest and most peaceful creations.
More information on this painting can be found in the Gallery publication _Early Netherlandish Painting_, which is available as a free PDF <u>https://www.nga.gov/content/dam/ngaweb/research/publications/pdfs/early-netherlandish-painting.pdf</u>
- Title: The Rest on the Flight into Egypt
- Creator: Gerard David
- Date Created: c. 1510
- Physical Dimensions: painted surface: 41.9 x 42.2 cm (16 1/2 x 16 5/8 in.) overall (panel): 44.3 x 44.9 cm (17 7/16 x 17 11/16 in.) framed: 69.2 x 54.6 cm (27 1/4 x 21 1/2 in.)
- Provenance: Acquired c. 1845 by The Rev. Montague Taylor [d. 1896], London; (sale, Christie, Manson & Woods, London, 19 May 1897, no. 152). (P. & D. Colnaghi and Co., London). acquired March 1898 by Rodolphe Kann [d. 1905], Paris;[1] acquired 1907 from the Kann estate by (Duveen Brothers, Inc., London, New York, and Paris). J. Pierpont Morgan, Sr. [1837-1913], New York, acquired c. 1908.[2] (M. Knoedler & Co., New York); purchased December 1935 by The A.W. Mellon Educational and Charitable Trust, Pittsburgh; gift 1937 to NGA. [1] Burton Fredericksen (Getty Provenance Index) provided John Oliver Hand (Curator of Northern Renaissance Paintings, NGA) with the date of acquisition, the preceding sale and dealer information, as well as the date of acquisition by Duveen Brothers. [2] Information in Knoedler brochure in the NGA curatorial files.
- Rights: CC0
- Medium: oil on panel
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