Moses Sweetening the Bitter Waters of Marah
Nicolas Poussin·1628
Historical Context
Moses Sweetening the Bitter Waters of Marah from 1628 at the Baltimore Museum depicts the miracle where Moses made undrinkable water sweet. This early work shows Poussin developing his approach to Old Testament narrative. Poussin approached Old Testament subjects with rigorous compositional logic, researching costume, architecture, and landscape from scholarly sources. These biblical narratives were conceived as history paintings in the highest academic sense, intended to instruct as well as ...
Technical Analysis
The composition arranges the miracle scene with developing classical order. Poussin's handling of the crowd's reactions creates a vivid biblical narrative.
