Artwork Page for Abraham Going to Sacrifice Isaac

Details / Information for Abraham Going to Sacrifice Isaac

Abraham Going to Sacrifice Isaac

1517–19

Lucas van Leyden

(Netherlandish, 1494–about 1533)
Culture
Netherlands, 16th century
Medium
woodcut
Credit Line
Gift of The Print Club of Cleveland 1969.233
Catalogue raisonné
Hollstein 3
Public Domain
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Location
Not on view
Print

Description

Abraham Going to Sacrifice Isaac was the culmination of Van Leyden's achievement in woodcut. He harmoniously balanced relatively straight, short, uniform hatching strokes, creating areas of tone, with vigorous, yet restrained lines for contours and descriptive detail. Spatial clarity and pictorial richness emphasize the artist's poignant approach to the subject. Because many believe Isaac's carrying of the wood to his own sacrifice prefigures Christ's bearing of the cross to Calvary, the actual journey of Abraham and Isaac becomes as significant a subject as the moment when Abraham prepares to sacrifice his son.
A vertically oriented print in dense black-inked fine lines on cream paper depicts Isaac and Abraham, people with light skin tones, walking toward the right through a rocky landscape. Isaac carries wood on his shoulder and a vessel; Abraham, wearing a turban and long robes, leads a donkey. In the upper background, a smaller scene depicts Abraham raising a blade over Isaac near an altar. A large tree anchors the left beside a distant shoreline.

Abraham Going to Sacrifice Isaac

1517–19

Lucas van Leyden

(Netherlandish, 1494–about 1533)
Netherlands, 16th century

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