Jan Luyken, “Killing the Followers of Baal”, c.1700

Jan Luyken (aka Johannes Luyken; Jan Luijken) (1649–1712)

“Killing the Followers of Baal”, c.1700, Illustration to the fourth volume of David and Willem Goeree’s (1635–1711) “Mosaize historie der Hebreeuwse kerke …” (Mosaic history of the Hebrew church …), inserted at page 646, published in Amsterdam in 1700.

Etching on laid paper with the three gatefolds of publication flattened with a backing sheet.

Size: (sheet) 32.2 x 55.4 cm; (image borderline) 28 x 54 cm.

Lettered below the image borderline: (centre) “Moses doet de Bel-hamels, der gener die met de Dogtersder Moabiten gehoereed, en zig aan Baal-Peor gekoppeld hadden; voor de Sonne op-hangen, en veel vande rest door de Rigters ter dood brengen. Num. XXV.”; (right) 4 Deel P. 646.”

([transl.] Moses causes the Bel-hamels, who had committed fornication with the daughters of Moab, and had joined themselves to Baal-peor, to be hanged before the sun; and many of the rest were put to death by the judges. Num. [The Book of Numbers—the fourth book of the Hebrew Bible] XXV. Volume 4, page 646.)

Van Eeghen 2626 (Pieter van Eeghen & Johan Philip van der Kellen 1905, “Het werk van Jan en Casper Luyken”, Amsterdam, Frederik Muller & Co., vol. 2, p. 489, cat. no. 2626).

Van Eeghen (1905) offers the following description of this print: (transl.) “​​Moses hangs the Bel-hamels .... and puts many of the rest to death. Num. XXV. — On the second ground on the right, before the entrance to the Court of the Tabernacle, the tent where Moses gives his commands in the presence of the Elders. Behind it on both sides the tents of the Israelites, between which are trees and gallows, loaded with the bodies of the executed. In the foreground on the left and right the putting to death of the apostates; in the middle the burial of the idols found. (p. 489; see https://archive.org/details/hetwerkvanjanen01kellgoog/page/488/mode/2up). 

Condition: a strong and well-printed (lifetime) impression showing no sign of wear to the printing plate with flattened gatefolds of publication and laid upon an archival support of millennium quality washi paper. Beyond misalignment to the left gatefold, the sheet is in an excellent condition for its large size and considerable age.

I am selling this large and visually arresting and (to my eyes) unsettling etching of a dreadful event driven by Moses against those that do not follow Jewish beliefs—in the sense of killing fornicators and those who worship Baal—for AU$274 (currently US$184.57/EUR166.02/GBP141.82 at the time of this listing) including Express Mail (EMS) postage and handling to anywhere in the world, but not (of course) any import duties/taxes imposed by some countries. Note that payment is in Australian dollars (AU$274) as this is my currency.

If you are interested in purchasing this remarkable etching executed with amazingly fine detail, please contact me (oz_jim@printsandprinciples.com) and I will send you a PayPal invoice to make the payment easy.