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Jusepe de Ribera, 'Jacob with the Flock of Laban', probably 1638
About the work
Overview
Jacob sits next to a stream, holding his shepherd’s staff, surrounded by his flock. Resting beneath a tree, he looks up towards heaven as if seeking guidance or strength: according to the Old Testament story, Jacob agreed to tend Laban’s flock for seven years so that he could marry his daughter Rachel. Instead of paying wages, Laban promised Jacob he could keep any speckled lambs that were born. Jacob peeled the bark off wooden branches and placed them in the stream (two are floating lower left). Any sheep that drank from this water would conceive speckled lambs, which Jacob was later able to claim as his own.
A copy after this painting in the Museo Cerralbo, Madrid, reveals that the National Gallery painting was substantially cut down on the left-hand side: the canvas was originally more rectangular in format and included a speckled sheep in the left foreground.
Ribera signed the painting lower right, stating his Spanish nationality, his training at the Academy in Rome and the date 1638.
Key facts
Details
- Full title
- Jacob with the Flock of Laban
- Artist
- Jusepe de Ribera
- Artist dates
- 1591 - 1652
- Date made
- probably 1638
- Medium and support
- oil on canvas
- Dimensions
- 132 × 118 cm
- Inscription summary
- Signed; Dated
- Acquisition credit
- Lord Colborne Bequest, 1854
- Inventory number
- NG244
- Location
- Not on display
- Collection
- Main Collection
- Previous owners
About this record
If you know more about this painting or have spotted an error, please contact us. Please note that exhibition histories are listed from 2009 onwards. Bibliographies may not be complete; more comprehensive information is available in the National Gallery Library.
Images
More works by Jusepe de Ribera
This painting probably belonged to a series of Apostles and represents either Saint Thomas or Saint Matthias, both of whose attribute is a spear. Ribera painted several such series throughout his career – the most complete, dating from around 1630, is in the Museo del Prado, Madrid. Apostle serie...
Not on display
Ribera depicts Saint Jerome, one of the four fathers of the Western Church, as a man of learning. The watery-eyed, bare-chested saint looks up from his work, his face catching the light. The scroll he holds refers to his monumental achievement: the translation of the Old and New Testaments into L...
Ribera captures the moment when Christ’s lifeless body is laid out after it has been brought down from the Cross. A solemn Saint John the Evangelist, dressed in red and green, gently supports Christ’s elegant corpse. Christ’s pallor is striking – his lips and skin are turning grey-blue – and his...