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Wikimedia Commons · Public domain · Hover to magnify, click for fullscreen
Original fileThe central figures show the Archangel Raphael holding the hand of Tobias, whom he leads on a journey. The angel carries a small box, or pyxis, which in the biblical narrative contains the fish's liver and gall used for healing. Finely hatched lines define the figures, while separate studies of two heads appear on the left margin of the sheet.
The narrative of Tobias and the Angel provided a scriptural foundation for Renaissance 'natural magic,' specifically the use of organic substances for exorcism and healing. Within the Western esoteric tradition, Raphael is frequently invoked in Kabbalistic and Hermetic texts as the celestial intelligence governing the restoration of sight and the compounding of the 'Great Medicine.'
Book of Tobit
The primary source text detailing the angel's role as a guide and his instructions on the medicinal use of fish organs.
Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa
In 'De Occulta Philosophia', Agrippa identifies Raphael as the angel presiding over the medicinal virtues of the natural world.
Object
Oil on panel
religious
Digital Source
Wikimedia Commons · Public domain
https://collections.ashmolean.org/object/71313
800 × 1139 px
Linked Data
AI AI-cataloged fields generated by gemini-3-flash-preview on March 31, 2026. Getty identifiers are AI-inferred and may require verification.