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The image shows a scene from an elevated viewpoint of a sunken area with a wooden bridge crossing two wooded sections. The brushwork is detailed, showing texture in the trees, bridge, and leaves. The horizon is at the top of the image, with a winding path curving behind the bridge. The color palette is gray, typical of a monochrome etching, emphasizing depth and detail. Gnarled trees with swirling branches frame the scene, while the pathway leads to a rocky landscape in the distance. The image focuses on texture and form rather than color.
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The image shows a scene from an elevated viewpoint of a sunken area with a wooden bridge crossing two wooded sections. The brushwork is detailed, showing texture in the trees, bridge, and leaves. The horizon is at the top of the image, with a winding path curving behind the bridge. The color palette is gray, typical of a monochrome etching, emphasizing depth and detail. Gnarled trees with swirling branches frame the scene, while the pathway leads to a rocky landscape in the distance. The image focuses on texture and form rather than color.

National Gallery of Art · Print

A Rocky Landscape with the Temptation of Christ

Sebastian Vrancx

Date
1620s(?)
Medium
etching with engraving on laid paper
Dimensions
plate: 25.2 × 18.7 cm (9 15/16 × 7 3/8 in.) sheet: 25.9 × 19.2 cm (10 3/16 × 7 9/16 in.)
Classification
Print
Accession number
2013.74.1
Credit line
Ailsa Mellon Bruce Fund
Time span
1601 to 1650
Department
CG-E
Original NGA record Wikidata

Subjects and terms

  • etching
  • engraving
  • landscape
Provenance

Friedrich August II, King of Saxony [1797-1854], Dresden (Lugt 971); (E. H. Ariëns Kappers, Amsterdam); purchased 2013 by NGA.

Inscription

in plate, in margin below image: Spiritus in sylvas desertaque dux it Iesum / Ut grave sentiret tentamen ab hoste maligno. / Commonstrat Satanas et regna potentia mundi / Et quoscunq[ue] tenet pulcherrimus orbis honores.; lower right, in margin below image: S. Vranx. In

Marks

lower right, stamped in black ink: [mark of [Friedrich Augustus II, King of Saxony (Lugt 971)]

Watermarks

indistinct coat of arms

NGA object ID 160536. Collection metadata is reproduced under CC0. This work is included because its NGA published-image record is marked open access; visitors should recheck the source record before substantial reuse.