Rest on the Flight into Egypt

Rest on the Flight into Egypt

Jan Muller

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

This charming engraving by Jan Muller, one of the very few after his own design, shows the Mary, the mother of Jesus, seated under a tree, looking down at the Christ child she cradles in her arms. The two are bathed in light emanating from his halo, while their surroundings are largely left in shadow. Joseph is relegated to the background, as is usual, here taking care of the family’s mule. This story of the flight from Bethlehem to Egypt to escape King Herod’s persecution is told briefly in the New Testament book of Matthew (2:13-14) and was elaborated on by early Christian and medieval theologians. The inscription below the image is a rebuke of King Herod, and is identical to that on a very rare etching by Muller’s Amsterdam contemporary Gerrit Pietersz. Sweelink (accession nos. 68.681.8 and 1974.547.7) The great majority of Muller’s engravings are after designs by other artists, and are in the virtuosic engraving style originated by the Dutch Mannerist Hendrick Goltzius. Here, in contrast, both the composition and technique are more restrained. Rather than the extreme swelling and tapering line most common in Goltzius’s prints, Muller uses an elegant, flowing line for his hatching, enhancing the sense of calm and serenity engendered by the subject.

Drawings and Prints

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Rest on the Flight into EgyptRest on the Flight into EgyptRest on the Flight into EgyptRest on the Flight into EgyptRest on the Flight into Egypt

The Department’s vast collection of works on paper comprises approximately 21,000 drawings, 1.2 million prints, and 12,000 illustrated books created in Europe and the Americas from about 1400 to the present day. Since its foundation in 1916, the Department has been committed to collecting a wide range of works on paper, which includes both pieces that are incredibly rare and lauded for their aesthetic appeal, as well as material that is more popular, functional, and ephemeral. The broad scope of the department’s collecting encourages questions of connoisseurship as well as those pertaining to function and context, and demonstrates the vital role that prints, drawings, and illustrated books have played throughout history.