Artist: Jan Luyken (Dutch, 1649 – 1712)
Title: Herod wages war against the robbers in the rocks by soldiers who are lowered in chests by windlasses hanging on stiff chains
Medium: Antique engraving on laid paper.
Publisher: Frans Houtteyn
Reference: Hollstein / Dutch and Flemish etchings, engravings and woodcuts c.1450-1700 ; Luyken 1905 / Het Werk van Jan en Caspar Luyken.
Dimensions: Sight size: 12 7/8 x 17 3/8 inches.
Framed Dimensions: Approximately 24 x 28 inches.
Framing: This piece has been professionally matted and framed using all new materials.
The method described, involving soldiers lowered in chests (crates/baskets) by windlasses from the top of precipices to fight robbers (brigands) hiding in inaccessible caves, is a historical account of King Herod’s military campaign, documented by the Roman-Jewish historian Flavius Josephus. This specific event took place during Herod’s early reign, likely around 41 or 40 BCE, in the cliffs and caves of the Arbel (or Arbela) region in Galilee.
Jan Luyken (1649–1712) is a well listed artist. He was a prolific Dutch poet, illustrator, and engraver, famous for his detailed, spiritually-focused prints illustrating trades, religious persecution, and mystical themes. after a youthful period of erotic poetry led to a profound conversion to Pietistic Anabaptist Christianity, he became a major figure in Dutch art and literature known for detailed realism.