David Playing the Harp Before Saul
Lucas van Leyden (Netherlandish, c. 1494-1533)
c. 1508
- Medium
- Engraving in black on ivory laid paper
- Classification
- Dimensions
- Image: 25.3 × 18.3 cm (10 × 7 1/4 in.); Sheet, trimmed within platemark: 25.4 × 18.4 cm (10 × 7 1/4 in.)
- Culture
- Netherlands
- Museum
- Art Institute of Chicago, Prints and Drawings
- Credit line
- Elizabeth Hammond Stickney Collection
- Rights
- Public domain (CC0), as the museum states it.
- Who can see it
- Tweens profiles and older: its subjects are known and suit older children. How works are placed
View at the Art Institute of Chicago
About this work
According to the Book of Samuel, an “evil spirit from the Lord” plagued King Saul, making him agitated and fearful of persecution. Because music was thought to have a therapeutic effect, the king summoned the hero and warrior David, who was renowned for his skill with the harp. In this scene of intense psychological drama, David tries to soothe the troubled king. Lucas van Leyden reveals Saul’s fragile mental state by portraying him sitting stiffly hunched in a chair, tightly clenching a spear in one fist and arching his right foot over his left. David’s pleasing performances would eventually lead to him succeeding Saul as the king of Israel.
Description © Art Institute of Chicago, CC BY 4.0
