The Purification of the Temple

Image credit: The National Gallery, London

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The subject of the Purification of the Temple is taken from the New Testament (Matthew 21: 12–13). Jesus drove the traders out of the Temple in Jerusalem, accusing them of turning a house of prayer into a den of thieves. Venusti painted numerous small-scale copies of drawings and frescoes by Michelangelo. No finished drawing by Michelangelo is known for this composition, but there are surviving small sketches of the figures. In Venusti’s painting, although the drama is centred on Jesus and the crowd of figures, the majority of the composition is devoted to the architecture, for which there is no known drawing. The pillars are modelled on famous antique examples in the Basilica of St Peter’s in Rome, which were believed to have come from the Temple of Solomon in Jerusalem.

The National Gallery, London

London

Title

The Purification of the Temple

Date

after 1550

Medium

Oil on wood

Measurements

H 61 x W 40 cm

Accession number

NG1194

Acquisition method

Bought, 1885

Work type

Painting

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Trafalgar Square, London, Greater London WC2N 5DN England

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