MOISIS GASPING WATER FROM THE ROCK Italian school,... Lot 23

MOISIS GASPING WATER FROM THE ROCK Italian school, 16th century oil on canvas, carved and gilded wooden frame 132 x 125 cm This painting depicts the Striking of the Rock, one of the most famous episodes of the Crossing of the Desert during the Exodus (Ex 17:5-7). Thirsty, the people of Israel complained to Moses. The Lord comes to his aid; he invites the patriarch to take the elders with him as witnesses and to strike the rock of Mount Horeb with a stick to make water fail. The Italian painter has distanced himself from the biblical account, reducing the number of actors to two. Moses, recognizable by his luminous horns (according to Michelangelo's interpretation), occupies the entire left half of the painting. He literally dominates the poor, withdrawn fellow who embodies both the suffering of the Hebrews and the hope of their deliverance.