Artwork
Lot and his daughters
Lot and his daughters is an unspecified painting by the Northern Renaissance artist Pseudo Jan Wellens de Cock. It dates from 1523 and is held in the collection of the Detroit Institute of Arts.
About this work
Overview
Lot and his Daughters, attributed to the workshop of Pseudo Jan Wellens de Cock, is an early sixteenth‑century religious canvas dated to 1523. The work is part of the collection of the Detroit Institute of Arts, where it is displayed among other Northern Renaissance pieces.
Subject & Meaning
The composition illustrates the biblical episode in which Lot, having escaped the destruction of Sodom, is seated with his two daughters. The women stand beside him, each holding a vessel—a bowl and a jug—suggesting the provision of food and drink as the city burns behind them, a visual reminder of divine judgment and survival.
Technique & Style
Rendered in a palette that balances warm, fiery tones in the background with cooler, subdued hues in the foreground, the painting employs chiaroscuro to model the figures and create spatial depth. The figures are dressed in contemporary Renaissance attire, their drapery articulated with careful shading that emphasizes volume against the luminous blaze of the distant castle.
History & Provenance
Created in 1523, the work was later acquired by the Detroit Institute of Arts, though its early ownership remains undocumented. The attribution to Pseudo Jan Wellens de Cock reflects scholarly consensus that the piece originates from the circle of the Flemish master, rather than the hand of the master himself.
Artist & collection
Artist
This group painted biblical scenes in the 1520s around Antwerp. Their *Triptych with the Crucifixion* shows Jesus on the cross between saints, while *Lot and his daughters* tells a story from Genesis. Look for their…
Calvary
Triptych with the Crucifixion (centre panel), St Peter and a Male Donor (inner left wing), St James and a Female Donor (inner right wing), St Christopher and the Christ Child on the Road of Life (outer wings)
Left wing of an altarpiece with the Circumcision (inner wing) and the Virgin of an Annunciation (outer wing)
Landscape with the hermits Paul and Anthony
The temptation of Saint Antony
Lot and his daughters
