Jan Luyken’s etching, “Moses Raised His Rod to Heaven and Egypt Became a Thunderous Land”, 1770

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

“Moses Raised His Rod to Heaven and Egypt Became a Thunderous Land” (descriptive title only) (aka “Moses zyn Staf na den hemel verheffende, word Egiptenland met Donder, swaren Hagel en vijer, aan menschen en beesten, en al wat op den velden is geslagen, en't geboomte verbooken. Exo. 9: 24.25), a gatefold Illustration to the third volume of David and Willem Goeree’s (1635–1711) “Mosaize historie der Hebreeuwse kerke …” (Mosaic history of the Hebrew church …) inserted at page 154 (see this page and the publication online: https://archive.org/details/ned-kbn-all-00007382-001/page/n210/mode/2up), published in Amsterdam in 1700.

Etching on laid paper with the gatefold of publication flattened and backed with a support sheet.

Size: (sheet) 32.1 x 38.4 cm; (plate) 29.3 x 37.7 cm; (image borderline) 27.9 x 36.8 cm.

For those who may be unfamiliar with the illustrated passage from the Book of Exodus (Exodus 9), Biblegateway.com offers the following translation: “[verse] 23 When Moses lifted his staff toward the sky, the Lord sent thunder and hail, and lightning struck the earth. So the Lord made it hail on Egypt. 24 It hailed, and lightning flashed while it hailed. This was the worst storm in all the land of Egypt since it had become a nation. 25 All over Egypt the hail knocked down everything that was out in the open. It struck down people, animals, and every plant in the fields and destroyed every tree in the fields. 26 The only place it didn’t hail was the region of Goshen, where the Israelites lived.” (https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus+9&version=GW).

Lettered in plate above the image borderline: (right) “3 Deel P. 154.”

Lettered in plate in Dutch below the image borderline: “Moses zyn Staf na den hemel verheffende, word Egiptenland met Donder, swaren Hagel en vijer, aan menschen en beesten, en al wat op den velden is geslagen, en't geboomte verbooken. Exo. 9:/24.25.” (Moses raising up his rod to heaven, the land of Egypt was declared with thunder, hail, and fire, to men and beasts, and to all that was slain in the fields, and to the trees. Exo[dus] 9: 24.25.)

Van Eeghen 2600 (Pieter van Eeghen & Johan Philip van der Kellen 1905, “Het werk van Jan en Casper Luyken”, Amsterdam, Frederik Muller & Co., vol. 2, p. 485, cat. no. 2600).

Van Eeghen (1905) offers the following description of this print: (transl.) “Scene outside the city, where, as a result of the breaking elements, people and animals are killed or injured, trees and shrubs are destroyed and further destruction is caused. In the background on the left is the city, where Pharaoh watches under the shelter of the gate, while Moses and Aaron stand a little further forward.” (p. 485; see https://archive.org/details/hetwerkvanjanen01kellgoog/page/485/mode/1up). 

Condition: a strong and near faultless impression. The sheet is in a near pristine condition for its large size and considerable age with the publication gatefold flattened when the sheet was laid onto a support of archival (millennium quality) washi paper.

I am selling this visually arresting etching that is not only large, but it is also in a superb condition, for AU$322 (currently US$215.22/EUR194.74/GBP171.42 at the time of this listing) including postage and handling to anywhere in the world, but not (of course) any import duties/taxes imposed by some countries.

If you are interested in purchasing this spectacular etching of explosive heavenly power evoked by Moses raising his staff, please contact me (oz_jim@printsandprinciples.com) and I will send you a PayPal invoice to make the payment easy.

This print has been sold