Boaz

Artist Jacob Jordaens the elder (Flemish, 1593 – 1678)

Datec. 1641/1642

MediumOil on canvas

DimensionsImage: 76 1/2 x 30 3/4 in. (194.3 x 78.1 cm)
Frame: 84 x 38 1/4 x 2 1/4 in. (213.4 x 97.2 x 5.7 cm)

ClassificationsPaintings

Credit LineMuseum purchase, 1984

Object numberSN987

The subject of these two works by the Flemish painter Jacob Jordaens draws from the Old Testament Book of Ruth. According to the text, Ruth was a beautiful young woman fiercely devoted to her family. Upon her husband's death, she moved with her mother-in-law Naomi to Bethlehem, and, in order to keep from starving, she worked the land of Naomi's relative Boaz. Impressed with her good conduct and fidelity, Boaz began to court her with gifts of grain from his fields and later presented his shoe to her, a traditional gesture signifying the proposal of marriage. In these companion pieces Jordaens shows his indebtedness to Rubens, with whom he occasionally collaborated. He utilizes Rubens' signature brushwork and lively colors in conjunction with his own understanding of physiognomy and lighting. Based on the size of the figures and steep illusionistic perspective, these paintings were most likely originally installed above a doorway.

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