In Saint John Writes the Book Revelation on the Isle of Patmos, which originally hung in the town hall in Ghent, we recognise Christ’s favourite disciple, the apostle John. The eagle and the pen are attributes he is frequently portrayed with and they reveal him to be the writer of the last and most spiritual of all the gospels. Following Jesus’ Ascension to heaven, John settled in Ephesus. He was persecuted for playing an active role in the spread of Christianity before finally being banned to the island of Patmos. Here he wrote the Revelations, or the Apocalypse, a prophetic book in which the terrifying end of mankind is described in hallucinatory images. De Crayer’s depiction of the visionary moment of inspiration is rather dramatic and typical of this master’s late work. The man who posed for the figure of St John can also be seen in Rubens’ triptych for the tomb of Jan Michielsen in the cathedral in Antwerp.
| Artist |
Gaspar de Crayer
RKD
VIAF
Wikidata
|
|---|---|
| Title | Saint John Writes the Book Revelation on the Isle of Patmos |
| Date | ca. 1649 - ca. 1669 |
| Period | 17th century |
| Signatures, inscriptions, and markings | signatures (names) bottom right: DCRAYER FE |
| Collection | paintings AAT |
| Object type | oil paintings (visual works) AAT |
| Inventory number | S-15 |
| Acquisition credit |
transfer
Stadhuis Ghent |
| Current whereabouts | Work currently not on display |
| Permalink | https://mskgent.be/collection/work/data/S-15 |
| IIIF Manifest | https://imagehub.mskgent.be/iiif/3/6330/manifest.json |
| Art & Architecture Thesaurus |
300055874
religious symbolism
AAT
300015636 landscapes AAT |
|---|---|
| Keywords Iconclass |
11H(JOHN)
the apostle John the Evangelist; possible attributes: book, cauldron, chalice with snake, eagle, palm, scroll
Iconclass
11I421 eagle (possibly with book) ~ symbol of St. John Iconclass 11Q511 the Bible as a book Iconclass 25F33(EAGLE) predatory birds: eagle Iconclass 25G3 trees Iconclass 25H112 rocks Iconclass 26A clouds Iconclass 26F2 bad weather Iconclass 31B6211 looking upwards Iconclass 49L51 pen Iconclass 49L62 ink-well Iconclass 49L641 paper (writing material) Iconclass 49L71 scroll Iconclass 61D(PATMOS) geographical names of countries, regions, mountains, rivers, etc. (names of cities and villages excepted) (PATMOS) Iconclass 73 New Testament Iconclass 73G the Revelation of John, the Apocalypse Iconclass 73G11 John (writing) on the island of Patmos, possibly the eagle beside him Iconclass |
| School / Style | Baroque AAT |
| Notice des tableaux du Musée de la Ville de Gand, situé au local de l'Académie Royale de Dessin, Peinture, Sculpture et Architecture. - Gand : Imprimerie de D.J. Vanderhaeghen, 1834 (nr. 25) |
| De Crayer ou de Craeyer (Gaspard) / Edmond De Busscher. - [s.l.] : [s.n.], [s.a.] (col. 41) |
| Catalogue du musée de peinture de la ville de Gand, 1900 / Louis Maeterlinck. - Gand : Imprimerie Victor Van Doosselaere, 1900 (nr. 112) |
| Museum van Schoone Kunsten : Catalogus ; Oude Meesters, Schilderstukken, teekeningen, plaatsneden (met geschiedkundig overzicht) / Maurice Dupuis, Georges Charles Nicolas Marie Hulin de Loo, Fritz Van Loo. - Gent : Drukkerij F. De Vos, 1938 ; Gent : Stad Gent, 1938 (p. 44) |
| Gaspar de Crayer : sa vie et ses oeuvres / Hans Vlieghe. - Bruxelles : Arcade, 1972 (p. 246, A 235) |
| Museum voor Schone Kunsten Gent : Catalogus schilderkunst ; Deel I: 14de - 18de eeuw ; Deel II: 19de - 20ste eeuw / Robert Hoozee, Johan De Smet, Bruno Fornari, Ruth Monteyne. - Gent : Museum voor Schone Kunsten Gent, 2007 (dl. I, p. 75 (ill.)) |
| Entre Rubens et Van Dyck : Gaspar de Crayer (1584-1669) (exposition Cassel, Musée de Flandre, 30.06 - 04.11.2018) / Sandrine Vézilier-Dussart, Alexis Merle du Bourg, Hans Vlieghe, Matthias Depoorter, Valentine De Beir. - Cassel : Musée départemental de Flandre (Cassel), 2018 (p. 8; 104-105) |
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