Artwork
Lot and His Daughters
Lot and His Daughters is a print by the Renaissance artist Lucas van Leyden. It dates from 1530 and is held in the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art.
About this work
For more quiet, unsettling scenes from the same time, look up Netherlands, 16th century.
A dim cave glows with firelight. Two young women sit close to an old man who’s passed out, wine cup tipped over. A third woman kneels, pouring more wine. Outside, a city burns in the distance.
The Bible says Lot’s daughters got him drunk to have children with him. This painting makes the cave feel cozy, almost normal—no angels, no lightning. The artist focuses on the quiet moment, not the sin.
For more quiet, unsettling scenes from the same time, look up Netherlands, 16th century.
Overview
Lucas van Leyden's 'Lot and His Daughters' is a 16th-century print depicting a morally complex scene from the Old Testament. The work interprets the story of Lot and his daughters after their escape from Sodom, focusing on the daughters' plan to conceive children with their intoxicated father.
Subject & Meaning
The print portrays the moment before the daughters' act, emphasizing the erotic undertones of the narrative. By depicting the daughters as naked and Lot as youthful and desire-stricken, van Leyden amplifies the episode's sensuality, diverging from the biblical account's moral emphasis.
Technique & Style
The composition is characterized by a warm, firelit cave, contrasting with the distant, burning city of Sodom. This visual dichotomy highlights the intimate, quiet atmosphere of the scene, downplaying the dramatic and supernatural elements of the biblical narrative.
Context
Created in 16th-century Netherlands, the print reflects the artistic tendencies of its time, often exploring subtle, psychologically charged moments from religious texts. Similar works from this period also favored understated, unsettling depictions of biblical themes.
Legacy
'Lot and His Daughters' contributes to van Leyden's reputation for nuanced, emotionally complex interpretations of religious subjects. The work's emphasis on psychological depth and sensual detail influences subsequent artistic explorations of similar themes.
Artist & collection
Artist
Lucas van Leyden (1494 – 8 August 1533), was a Dutch painter and printmaker in engraving and woodcut. Lucas van Leyden was among the first Dutch exponents of genre painting and was a very accomplished engraver.
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