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Original fileVan Moyses en Pharao
About This Work
Moses stands before Pharaoh and his court, gesturing toward a swarm of locusts covering the ground. To the left, a figure with a shovel works near a fountain decorated with a dolphin-like creature, while in the background, hail falls from dark clouds upon the Egyptian city. The scene depicts the divine disruption of the natural order as described in the Book of Exodus.
As part of the 'Thesaurus veteris Testamenti,' this work reflects the late Renaissance interest in biblical 'prodigies' and the intersection of theology with natural philosophy. Aegidius Sadeler was a key figure in the court of Rudolf II in Prague, where the study of extreme natural phenomena and divine signs was central to the intellectual and esoteric climate.
Inscriptions
Grassatur pestis, sequit post ulcera grando, Arva locusta tenet, densaque fit nebula. Exod: 9. v. 10. v. 23. v. 13. 6
Translation
The plague spreads, hail follows the sores, The locust takes the fields, and a thick mist arises. Exod: 9. v. 10. v. 23. v. 13.
Connected Texts
Philo of Alexandria
Philo's 'On the Life of Moses' provides a philosophical and allegorical interpretation of the Egyptian plagues as cosmic corrections.
Exodus
The primary biblical source for the narrative of the ten plagues.
Collections
Provenance & Source
Object
Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam
paper
height 202 mm x width 286 mm
religious
Linked Data
AI AI-cataloged fields generated by gemini-3-flash-preview on April 2, 2026. Getty identifiers are AI-inferred and may require verification.