Rust op de vlucht naar Egypte

The Virgin Mary sits in a landscape, cradling the Christ Child on her lap while holding a cluster of dates. To the left, Saint Joseph reaches up to bend a palm branch toward the family, a motif based on apocryphal accounts of nature providing for the exiles. In the background, a distant traveler and donkey cross a bridge near a lakeside town, underscoring the theme of pilgrimage and flight.

While a religious scene, this work reflects the Haarlem Mannerist interest in nature and divine providence. The miraculous palm tree originates from the apocryphal Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew, a text often referenced in the Renaissance to illustrate the harmony between the natural world and the divine.