
Collection Online as of December 15, 2019
Part of a set. See all set records
(Italian, 1712-1793)
Oil on canvas
Mr. and Mrs. William H. Marlatt Fund 1952.235.4
not on view
Three of the four pictures in the series depict episodes from the life of the Old Testament figure of Abraham, beginning with the angels appearing to Abraham. According to Genesis 18, Abraham met three men at midday, and, recognizing that they were angels, humbly bowed down to them with his face touching the ground. The encounter incongruously takes place before a marble, classical portico in which a woman lurks, presumably his wife Sarah.