The Triumph of Mordecai
ca. 1736
Medium
Oil on canvas
Dimensions
33 5/8 x 59 1/4 in. (86 x 150.2 cm)
Classification
Paintings
Department
European Paintings
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of J. Pierpont Morgan, 1906
Accession Number
07.225.285
Tags
Art Historical Context
Jean François de Troy's *The Triumph of Mordec* (ca. 1736) captures a pivotal moment from the Book of Esther in the Bible, where the Jewish hero Mordecai is by King Ahasuerus. After thwarting a plot against his people, Mordecai is paradedantly through the streets on the king's horse, draped in royal robes—a scene brimming with drama and celebration. Painted in oil on canvas, this large-scale work (33 5/8 x 59 1/4 in.) exemplifies the grandeur of 18th-century history painting a genre favored for its moral and narrative depth. As a leading French Rococo artist, de Troy infuses the composition w...
About the Artist
Jean François de Troy · 1679–1752
Jean-François de Troy (1679–1752) was born in Paris into a family of artists, the son of the esteemed portrait painter François de Troy, under whom he first studied. After failing to secure the Prix de Rome, he traveled to Italy from 1699 to 1706 at his father's expense, residing initially at the French Academy in Rome and visiting northern Italian cities, where he absorbed influences from masters...