Moses makes water gush out of the rock Workshop of Francesco Bassano II

Moses makes water gush out of the rock
Workshop of Francesco Bassano II °
(Bassano 1549 - Venice 1592)

Oil painting on canvas
Contemporary frame
Canvas size 89 x 129
Frame size 105 x 142
The painting has been perfectly relined and is in excellent condition.

The work is cataloged in
PHOTOTECA of the "FEDERICO ZERI FOUNDATION" of the UNIVERSITY of BOLOGNA file n ° 44432. (See photos)
from Auction Christie's, London (UK)
of 24 July 1959 lot n ° 76

This important Venetian canvas from the end of the 1500s surprisingly depicts the scene of a miraculous episode that took place during the biblical exodus of the Jewish people.
Fleeing from Egypt where they were enslaved, the Jews are led by Moses to the Promised Land.
For forty years they wander in the Sinai desert and their sufferings are mitigated by the help of God who rains manna from heaven. One day, tired and thirsty, the Jews feel abandoned by a God whose existence they begin to doubt and turn to Moses asking for a Divine sign. And here is the miracle of the Great Prophet who beats the stick on the rock making a waterfall gush out.
The scene lends itself particularly to the ways of the lively Venetian painting of the 16th century which sees the greatest and most famous exponents in the "Bassano" family. This splendid work is in fact part of one of the most successful Biblical representations made in the workshop of Francesco Bassano the Younger, son of Jacopo and grandson of the progenitor Francesco Bassano the Elder.
The painting is of great pictorial commitment with an infinite series of characters and animals described with inimitable mastery. The composition, completely saturated with figures and details, is truly enjoyable in every area of ??the large canvas. The viewer is not attracted to a main protagonist or a focal point, but his gaze is lost in the continuous search for new animated images.
The large dimensions of the canvas are typical of Bassanese production and allow to express all the imagination of these great masters of Venetian art. Finally, note the extraordinary chromatic range of the painting, truly exceptional also in consideration of the time.
We reiterate its excellent condition with an old professionally executed re-covering and a light cleaning with protective paint to bring out the brilliance of the colors that have remained unchanged over time.
This is a painting which, in addition to an evident very high pictorial level and a magnificent visual effect, offers an established historical guarantee.