Artist: Jan Luyken (Dutch, 1649 – 1712)
Title: Darkness, The Ninth Plague of Egypt
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 22 x 26 inches.
Framing: This piece has been professionally matted and framed using all new materials.
“The Ninth Plague of Egypt, described in Exodus 10, was a supernatural, palpable darkness that covered Egypt for three days, preventing people from seeing or moving, while the Israelites in Goshen had light in their dwellings. This plague targeted the heart of Pharaoh and Egyptian society, highlighting God’s power and culminating in Pharaoh’s continued refusal to release the Israelites before the final plague of the Death of the Firstborn.
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.