Flucht nach Ägypten

Completed in 1818, this panel painting by Cornelius was made in the same year as The Three Marys at the Tomb — a period of exceptional productivity as the artist consolidated his reputation from the Casa Bartholdy success and pursued new commissions in Rome while negotiating with Munich about future fresco projects. The 1818 date places this work in the final phase of Cornelius's purely Roman career; within a few years he would depart for Düsseldorf to take up his academy directorship, ending his time in Italy. Panel paintings from this late Roman period by Cornelius are relatively rare given his primary focus on fresco-scale work, making surviving examples valuable documents of his approach to smaller-format devotional or historical subjects. The choice of panel — rather than canvas — continued to affirm the Nazarene connection to pre-modern Northern European tradition even as the Brotherhood's collective experiment was winding down.

By 1818 Cornelius's mastery was assured; the panel technique shows confident, economical underdrawing with paint applied in decisive campaigns. The surface would show the high-finish, low-impasto quality characteristic of Nazarene oil technique adapted from fresco practice — smooth, matte, and colour-clear.