On view
European Art
Duane Wilder Gallery
Duane Wilder Gallery
The Brazen Serpent,
1549
Maerten van Heemskerck, 1498–1574; born Heemskerck, Netherlands; died Haarlem, Netherlands
y1990-44
The story of the Brazen Serpent is recounted in Numbers 21:4–9. While wandering in the desert, the Israelites were saved from a host of divinely sent poisonous serpents. God advised Moses to create “a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole” so the afflicted could look upon it and be cured. The visual and typological parallels between the image and that of the crucified Christ made this an ideal subject for the outer wings of a Crucifixion altarpiece. Heemskerck’s Brazen Serpent once consisted of two separate panels covering a colorful Crucifixion panel now in the Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg. The work’s limited chromatic palette, a technique known as grisaille, follows the widespread Netherlandish practice of covering vibrant inner panels with sober wing panels. The painting’s “sculptural” look also reflects Heemskerck’s interest in ancient works, such as the Laocoön, that he observed during his formative residence in Rome from 1532 to 1537.
More About This Object
Information
Title
The Brazen Serpent
Dates
1549
Maker
Medium
Oil on wood panel, transferred to canvas
Dimensions
101.3 × 67.3 cm (39 7/8 × 26 1/2 in.)
frame: 120.3 × 87.3 × 7 cm (47 3/8 × 34 3/8 × 2 3/4 in.)
Credit Line
Museum purchase, gift of the Friends of The Princeton University Art Museum on the occasion of Allen Rosenbaum's tenth anniversary as director
Object Number
y1990-44
Signatures
Signed and dated bottom left: Martinus Heemskerck inventor 1549
Culture
Type
1811 acquired for Alexander I of Russia through Vivant Denon; sold R. Lepke, Berlin, 3/5/1907, no. 17; Adolph Fröschels, Berlin, 1909; sold Paul Brandt, Amsterdam, 11/5/68, no. 72; sold Mak van Waay, Amsterdam, 11/10/71, no. 78; [David M. Koetser Gallery, Zurich, 1972]; Private Collection, The Netherlands; [Bob P. Haboldt & Co., New York]; formerly L.1989.67
- Leon Preibisz, Martin van Heemskerck: ein beitrag zur geschichte des Romanismus in der Niederländischen Malerei des XVI-Jahrhunderts, (Leipzig: Klinkhardt und Biermann, 1911)., p. 70, no. 8
- Max J. Friedländer, Die altniederländische Malerei, (Berlin: P. Cassirer, 1924-1937)., vol. 2: no. 103, p. 125
- Godefridus Joannes Hoogewerff, De noord-nederlandsche schilderkunst, (’s-Gravenhage: M. Nijhoff, 1936-47)., Vol. 4: p. 326; Vol. 5: p. 156
- Nikolaj N. Nikulin, "Rekonstrukcija tripticha "Raspjatie" Martina fan Chemskerka", Soobshchenii︠a︡ Gosudarstvennogo Ėrmitazha (Reports of the State Hermitage Museum) 24 (1963): p. 14-16., p. 16 (illus.); p. 48: english summary
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Max J. Friedländer, Early Netherlandish painting, (Leiden: A.W. Sijthoff; Brussels: Éditions de la Connaissance, 1967-).
, vo. 2: no. 103, p. 77 - Rainald Grosshans, Maerten van Heemskerck: die Gemälde, (Berlin: Boettcher, 1980)., p. 189-190, no. 68; pl. 99
- Kuznet︠s︡ov, I︠U︡. (I︠U︡riĭ), Dutch painting in Soviet museums, (New York: H.N. Abrams; Leningrad: Aurora Art Publishers, 1982)., Text for pl. 12-14
- Kunst voor de beeldenstorm: Noordnederlandse kunst 1525-1580, (Amsterdam: Rijksmuseum; 's-Gravenhage: Staatsuitgeverij, 1986)., no. 138; p. 256-257 (illus.)
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Werner Hofmann, Zauber der Medusa: europäische Manierismen, (Wien: Löcker, 1987).
, no. 30; p. 156; p. 127 (illus.) - Old master paintings and drawings: the first five years: [exhibition December 6-December 24, 1988, Bob P. Haboldt & Co.], (New York: Bob P. Haboldt & Co., 1989). , no. 4; p. 34-35; p. 35 (illus.)
- Nikulin, Nikolaĭ Nikolaevich, Netherlandish painting, fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, (Florence: Giunti, 1989)., p. 110-112, no. 52
- "Calendar", Burlington magazine 132, no. 1051 (Oct., 1990): p. 747-751., p. 751, fig. 94
- Jefferson C. Harrison, ""The Brazen Serpent" by Maarten van Heemskerck: aspects of its style and meaning," Record of the Art Museum, Princeton University 49, no. 1 (1990): p. 16–29., p. 16, fig. 1
- "Acquisitions of the Art Museum 1990," Record of the Art Museum, Princeton University 50, no. 1 (1991): p. 16-69., p. 21, p. 23 (illus.)
- Helene F. Roberts, ed., Encyclopedia of comparative iconography: themes depicted in works of art, (Chicago: Fitzroy Dearborn, 1998)., Vol. 2: p. 812 (illus.)
- Princeton University Art Museum: Handbook of the Collection (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2007), p. 263 (illus.)
