Belshazzar's Feast is a major painting by Rembrandt now in the National Gallery, London.[1] The painting is Rembrandt's attempt to establish himself as a painter of large, baroque history paintings.[2][3] The date of the painting is unknown, but most sources give a date between 1635 and 1638.[4][1]
The story of Belshazzar and the writing on the wall originates in the Old TestamentBook of Daniel.[1] The Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar looted the Temple in Jerusalem and has stolen the sacred artefacts such as golden cups.[5] His son Belshazzar used these cups for a great feast where the hand of God appeared and wrote the inscription on the wall prophesying the downfall of Belshazzar's reign.[5] The text on the wall says "mene, mene, tekel, upharsin". Biblical scholars interpret this to mean "God has numbered the days of your kingdom and brought it to an end; you have been weighed in the balances and found wanting; your kingdom is given to the Medes and Persians".[1]
The inscription on the wall is an interesting element in this painting. Rembrandt lived in the Jewish Quarter of Amsterdam and "derived the form of Hebrew inscription from a book by his friend, the learned Rabbi and printer, Menasseh ben Israel, yet mistranscribed one of the characters[6] and arranged them in columns, rather than right to left, as Hebrew is written."[2][7] This last detail is essential as it relates to the question of why Belshazzar and his advisers were not able to decipher the inscription and had to send for Daniel to help them with it.[8] The biblical story does not identify the language of the cryptic message, but it is generally assumed to be Aramaic, which, like Hebrew, is written in right-to-left rows, and not in right-to-left columns as in the painting. Although there is no accepted explanation why the Babylonian priests were unable to decipher the writing,[9] the point of this unconventional arrangement – reading the text in the painting in the conventional row-wise left-to-right order results in a garbled message – may be to suggest why the text proved incomprehensible to the Babylonian wise men;[10] This explanation is in accordance with the opinion of the amoraShmuel, which is mentioned in the Babylonian Talmud, Tractate Sanhedrin, 22a, among various dissenting views.
Receptionedit
The painting was in possession of the Earl of Derby at Knowsley Hall since 1736. The picture, however, was barely known beyond England, and it was not considered a masterpiece.[11] As it was exhibited at the Art Treasures Exhibition in Manchester in 1857, the curator George Scharf wrote: "The whole picture, notwithstanding the boldness of the attitudes, is tame, and inadequate in execution."[12] This lack of admiration can be explained in comparison to contemporary depictions of the biblical story, especially Belshazzar's Feast by John Martin (c. 1821), that earned much more reputation by its size and grandeur of its composition. This assessment changed in the second half of the 20th century together with the revaluation of Rembrandt's historical paintings. After Belshazzar's Feast was acquired by the National Gallery in 1964, it became very popular and was used many times as an illustration for commercial products like album covers. In 2014, it was the third most licensed image of the National Gallery.[11]
Painting materialsedit
Rembrandt's handling of painting materials and his painting technique in Belshazzar's Feast are both exceptional and do not compare to any of his other works.[13] The palette of this painting is unusually rich encompassing such pigments as vermilion, smalt, lead-tin-yellow, yellow and red lakes, ochres and azurite.[14]
^ ab. Nationalgallery.org.uk. Archived from the original on 7 May 2009. Retrieved 20 February 2012.
^. The National Gallery. Archived from the original on 7 May 2009. Retrieved 20 February 2012.
^Bruyn, J.; Haak, B.; Levie, S.H.; van Thiel, P.J.J.; van de Wetering, E. (2013). A Corpus of Rembrandt Paintings: 1635–1642. Springer Science & Business Media. p. 132. ISBN9789400908116.
^ abvan Rijn, Rembrandt Harmenszoon; Bomford, David; Kirby, Jo; Roy, Ashok; Rüger, Axel; White, Raymond (2006). Rembrandt. Yale University Press. p. 110. ISBN978-1-85709-356-8.
^Littman, R. (1993). "An error in the Menetekel inscription in Rembrandt's "Belshazzar's Feast"". Oud Holland. 107 (3): 296–7. doi:10.1163/187501793X00036. Specifically, the final character (at the bottom of the leftmost row) is shown as a ז (zayin) instead of a final ן (nun).
^Hausherr, R. (1963). "Zur Menetekel-Inschrift auf Rembrandts Belsazarbild". Oud Holland. 78: 142–9. doi:10.1163/187501763X00101.
^"Daniel 5:1-8". Bible Gateway. Bible Gateway. Retrieved 5 April 2015.
^Kahn, David (1996). The Codebreakers. The Comprehensive History of Secret Communication from Ancient Times to the Internet. Simon and Schuster. pp. 80–81. ISBN9781439103555.
^Colvin, Matt (29 May 2010). "Rembrandt's Belshazzar's Feast". Colvinism. Retrieved 5 April 2015.
^ abDohe, Sebastian (2014): Gewogen und zu leicht befunden? Die Rezeption von Rembrandts „Gastmahl des Belsazar“. In: Justus Lange/Sebastian Dohe/Anne Harmssen (eds.): Mene, mene tekel. Das Gastmahl des Belsazar in der niederländischen Kunst.Michael Imhof Verlag, Petersberg, ISBN978-3-7319-0153-2, pp. 61–81.
^Scharf, George (1857). A Handbook to the Paintings by Ancient Masters in the Art Treasures Exhibition. London. p. 61.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
^Bomford, David; et al. (2006). Art in the Making: Rembrandt. London: National Gallery. pp. 110–117. ISBN978-1-85709-356-8.
^"Rembrandt, Belshazzar's Feast, Pigment analysis". Colourlex. Retrieved 6 April 2015.
Referencesedit
Bomford, David (2006). Art in the Making: Rembrandt. London: National Gallery Company.
Bruyn, J. et al., Belshazzar’s Feast, in A Corpus of Rembrandt Paintings, Stichting Foundation Rembrandt Research Project Volume 3, 1989, pp 124–133
External linksedit
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Feast of Belshazzar (Rembrandt).
"Rembrandt, Belshazzars's Feast". National Gallery London. Retrieved 6 April 2015.
"Rembrandt, Belshazzar's Feast". Colourlex. Retrieved 6 April 2015.
"Proceedings of the Central Criminal Court, 16th October 1834". Old Bailey Proceedings Online. www.oldbaileyonline.org. Retrieved 17 January 2020.
February 18, 2024
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Belshazzar s Feast is a major painting by Rembrandt now in the National Gallery London 1 The painting is Rembrandt s attempt to establish himself as a painter of large baroque history paintings 2 3 The date of the painting is unknown but most sources give a date between 1635 and 1638 4 1 Belshazzar s FeastArtistRembrandtYearc 1635 1638MediumOil on canvasDimensions167 6 cm 209 2 cm 66 0 in 82 4 in LocationNational Gallery London Contents 1 The story 2 Reception 3 Painting materials 4 See also 5 Notes 6 References 7 External linksThe story editThe story of Belshazzar and the writing on the wall originates in the Old Testament Book of Daniel 1 The Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar looted the Temple in Jerusalem and has stolen the sacred artefacts such as golden cups 5 His son Belshazzar used these cups for a great feast where the hand of God appeared and wrote the inscription on the wall prophesying the downfall of Belshazzar s reign 5 The text on the wall says mene mene tekel upharsin Biblical scholars interpret this to mean God has numbered the days of your kingdom and brought it to an end you have been weighed in the balances and found wanting your kingdom is given to the Medes and Persians 1 The inscription on the wall is an interesting element in this painting Rembrandt lived in the Jewish Quarter of Amsterdam and derived the form of Hebrew inscription from a book by his friend the learned Rabbi and printer Menasseh ben Israel yet mistranscribed one of the characters 6 and arranged them in columns rather than right to left as Hebrew is written 2 7 This last detail is essential as it relates to the question of why Belshazzar and his advisers were not able to decipher the inscription and had to send for Daniel to help them with it 8 The biblical story does not identify the language of the cryptic message but it is generally assumed to be Aramaic which like Hebrew is written in right to left rows and not in right to left columns as in the painting Although there is no accepted explanation why the Babylonian priests were unable to decipher the writing 9 the point of this unconventional arrangement reading the text in the painting in the conventional row wise left to right order results in a garbled message may be to suggest why the text proved incomprehensible to the Babylonian wise men 10 This explanation is in accordance with the opinion of the amora Shmuel which is mentioned in the Babylonian Talmud Tractate Sanhedrin 22a among various dissenting views Reception editThe painting was in possession of the Earl of Derby at Knowsley Hall since 1736 The picture however was barely known beyond England and it was not considered a masterpiece 11 As it was exhibited at the Art Treasures Exhibition in Manchester in 1857 the curator George Scharf wrote The whole picture notwithstanding the boldness of the attitudes is tame and inadequate in execution 12 This lack of admiration can be explained in comparison to contemporary depictions of the biblical story especially Belshazzar s Feast by John Martin c 1821 that earned much more reputation by its size and grandeur of its composition This assessment changed in the second half of the 20th century together with the revaluation of Rembrandt s historical paintings After Belshazzar s Feast was acquired by the National Gallery in 1964 it became very popular and was used many times as an illustration for commercial products like album covers In 2014 it was the third most licensed image of the National Gallery 11 Painting materials editRembrandt s handling of painting materials and his painting technique in Belshazzar s Feast are both exceptional and do not compare to any of his other works 13 The palette of this painting is unusually rich encompassing such pigments as vermilion smalt lead tin yellow yellow and red lakes ochres and azurite 14 See also editList of paintings by RembrandtNotes edit a b c d Belshazzar s Feast The National Gallery a b The description of the painting on The National Gallery website Nationalgallery org uk Archived from the original on 7 May 2009 Retrieved 20 February 2012 painting fear The National Gallery Archived from the original on 7 May 2009 Retrieved 20 February 2012 Bruyn J Haak B Levie S H van Thiel P J J van de Wetering E 2013 A Corpus of Rembrandt Paintings 1635 1642 Springer Science amp Business Media p 132 ISBN 9789400908116 a b van Rijn Rembrandt Harmenszoon Bomford David Kirby Jo Roy Ashok Ruger Axel White Raymond 2006 Rembrandt Yale University Press p 110 ISBN 978 1 85709 356 8 Littman R 1993 An error in the Menetekel inscription in Rembrandt s Belshazzar s Feast Oud Holland 107 3 296 7 doi 10 1163 187501793X00036 Specifically the final character at the bottom of the leftmost row is shown as a ז zayin instead of a final ן nun Hausherr R 1963 Zur Menetekel Inschrift auf Rembrandts Belsazarbild Oud Holland 78 142 9 doi 10 1163 187501763X00101 Daniel 5 1 8 Bible Gateway Bible Gateway Retrieved 5 April 2015 Kahn David 1996 The Codebreakers The Comprehensive History of Secret Communication from Ancient Times to the Internet Simon and Schuster pp 80 81 ISBN 9781439103555 Colvin Matt 29 May 2010 Rembrandt s Belshazzar s Feast Colvinism Retrieved 5 April 2015 a b Dohe Sebastian 2014 Gewogen und zu leicht befunden Die Rezeption von Rembrandts Gastmahl des Belsazar In Justus Lange Sebastian Dohe Anne Harmssen eds Mene mene tekel Das Gastmahl des Belsazar in der niederlandischen Kunst Michael Imhof Verlag Petersberg ISBN 978 3 7319 0153 2 pp 61 81 Scharf George 1857 A Handbook to the Paintings by Ancient Masters in the Art Treasures Exhibition London p 61 a href Template Cite book html title Template Cite book cite book a CS1 maint location missing publisher link Bomford David et al 2006 Art in the Making Rembrandt London National Gallery pp 110 117 ISBN 978 1 85709 356 8 Rembrandt Belshazzar s Feast Pigment analysis Colourlex Retrieved 6 April 2015 References editBomford David 2006 Art in the Making Rembrandt London National Gallery Company Bruyn J et al Belshazzar s Feast in A Corpus of Rembrandt Paintings Stichting Foundation Rembrandt Research Project Volume 3 1989 pp 124 133External links edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Feast of Belshazzar Rembrandt Rembrandt Belshazzars s Feast National Gallery London Retrieved 6 April 2015 Rembrandt Belshazzar s Feast Colourlex Retrieved 6 April 2015 Proceedings of the Central Criminal Court 16th October 1834 Old Bailey Proceedings Online www oldbaileyonline org Retrieved 17 January 2020 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Belshazzar 27s Feast Rembrandt amp oldid 1188469652, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
