Italy, Florence / c. 1527
The Sacrifice of Isaac
The Cleveland Museum of Art catalogs The Sacrifice of Isaac as painting (Italy, Florence · c. 1527).
The angel has two visible sets of legs, showing the artist’s revision of the composition.
A CLOSER LOOK
The museum identifies this painting as oil on wood and credits Andrea del Sarto (Italian, 1486–1530).
The museum's collection notes: In this dramatic test of faith from the Old Testament book of Genesis, Abraham agrees to slay his son Isaac on God’s command. As Abraham raises the knife, an angel suddenly appears to halt the sacrifice. This work gains its power from the complex expressions of father and son, combining grief, strength, resignation, fear, and realization in their faces and bodies, the latter inspired by ancient sculpture and Michelangelo. Andrea del Sarto never finished this painting, and it lays bare his working methods. He transferred the design to the panel from a drawing, reinforcing the chalk with painted lines—best seen in the donkey at the far right. H
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The Cleveland Museum of ArtThe Sacrifice of IsaacOriginal explanation based on the sources above. Images carry their own reuse terms.