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Wedding Night of Tobias and Sarah
Pieter Lastman (Dutch, 1583–1633)
1611
Medium/Technique
Oil on panel
Dimensions
Overall: 41.2 x 57.8cm (16 1/4 x 22 3/4in.)
Framed: 57.2 x 73.7 cm (22 1/2 x 29 in.)
Framed: 57.2 x 73.7 cm (22 1/2 x 29 in.)
Credit Line
Juliana Cheney Edwards Collection
Accession Number62.985
OUT ON LOAN
On display at High Museum of Art, Atlanta, GA, April 19, 2024 – July 14, 2024
On display at High Museum of Art, Atlanta, GA, April 19, 2024 – July 14, 2024
CollectionsEurope
ClassificationsPaintings
The Book of Tobit, part of the Roman Catholic Bible, recounts the story of Tobias, whose guardian angel, Raphael, guides him through the trials of his life. Following the angel's advice, Tobias burns the heart and liver of a giant fish in order to drive off a demon who threatens his life on his wedding night. From the bed Sarah watches her husband with concern, as Raphael wrestles with the demon overhead. The legend of Tobias would become a favorite subject of Lastman's most famous pupil, Rembrandt.
InscriptionsLower right: PLastman (P and L joined) fecit / 1611
Provenance1819, possibly Dr. Adam Neale (d. 1832), Exeter, England; June 26, 1819, possibly Neale sale, Christie's, London, lot 45 [see note 1]. Private collection [see note 2]. 1962, M.H. Drey, Ltd., London; 1962, sold by Drey to the MFA. (Accession Date: November 14, 1962)
NOTES:
[1] A painting by Lastman of Tobias exorcising the Demon was included in the sale of Dr. Adam Neale. The catalogue gives neither its description nor its dimensions, so it cannot be positively identified with the MFA painting. Two other versions of the theme by Lastman are in Budapest (Szépmüvészeti Múzeum, inv. no. 5152) and Leeuwarden (Museum het Princessehof, inv. no. 3034). Both show Tobias and the demon, with the archangel Raphael, at the shore.
[2] In a letter to the MFA (January 29, 1963), the dealer Margaret H. Drey wrote "when I bought the picture I was told that it came from a very good private collection, and although I pressed several times for further particulars, I got no response." She does not specify from whom she purchased it.
NOTES:
[1] A painting by Lastman of Tobias exorcising the Demon was included in the sale of Dr. Adam Neale. The catalogue gives neither its description nor its dimensions, so it cannot be positively identified with the MFA painting. Two other versions of the theme by Lastman are in Budapest (Szépmüvészeti Múzeum, inv. no. 5152) and Leeuwarden (Museum het Princessehof, inv. no. 3034). Both show Tobias and the demon, with the archangel Raphael, at the shore.
[2] In a letter to the MFA (January 29, 1963), the dealer Margaret H. Drey wrote "when I bought the picture I was told that it came from a very good private collection, and although I pressed several times for further particulars, I got no response." She does not specify from whom she purchased it.