Tobias and the Angel (Filippino Lippi)
Filippino Lippi's painting of Tobias and Raphael.
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Painted in oil and tempera on a poplar panel, this work by Florentine Renaissance artist Filippino Lippi dates to around 1475–1480. It shows Tobias and the Angel, a biblical scene frequently chosen by artists of that era. The painting now resides at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.
History
Filippino Lippi first learned painting from his father, Filippo Lippi, and after his father died, he studied under Sandro Botticelli starting in 1472. This painting dates from his early career and shares a composition with earlier works by Antonio del Pollaiuolo and Andrea del Verrocchio. Its early ownership is unknown.
The work was sold in 1879 from Alexander Barker’s collection, then belonged to William Cornwallis-West and later Robert Henry Benson. In 1927, the Benson Collection was sold to Duveen Brothers, and the Samuel H. Kress Foundation acquired the painting in 1936. It was given to the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC in 1939, where it remains part of the Samuel H. Kress Collection.
Description
The work is executed in oil paint and tempera on a poplar panel, measuring 32.7 x 23.5 cm. It illustrates the biblical story from the Book of Tobit, in which Tobias, son of the blinded Tobit, is sent from Nineveh to Ecbatana to collect a debt. The archangel Raphael, disguised as the human Azariah, accompanies him. During the journey, the angel advises Tobias to catch a fish from the River Tigris and later use its gall to cure his father's blindness.
The two main figures walk arm in arm through a landscape, their blond heads inclined toward each other, with a white dog, trees, a river, and a tall tower on the right. Raphael wears a blue gown and has wings; Tobias is dressed in a blue tunic with a red cloak. The boy holds the fish in his left hand, while the angel carries a small golden mortar for preparing the remedy. The subject appealed to wealthy Florentine merchants, combining themes of debt recovery, healing, youth taking advice, and references to Christ and baptism.
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Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Tobias and the Angel (Filippino Lippi) (CC BY-SA 4.0).
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