Jacob’s Ladder is a tempera painting created by

Elias Moskos Ilias or Elias Moskos ( el, Ηλίας Μόσκος, 1620/1629- January 26, 1687) was a Greek educator, shipping merchant and painter from Crete. The last name Moskos was associated with three famous painters of the Cretan School alive during the ...

. Elias was a Greek painter originally from the island of Crete. By the 1650s he was living on the island of

Zakynthos Zakynthos (also spelled Zakinthos; el, Ζάκυνθος, Zákynthos ; it, Zacinto ) or Zante (, , ; el, Τζάντε, Tzánte ; from the Venetian form) is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea. It is the third largest of the Ionian Islands. Za ...

. He also worked on the island of Kefalonia. There were two other painters active during his lifetime with the same last name.

Ioannis Moskos Ioannis Moskos ( el, Ιωάννης Μόσκος; 1635-44 – 1721) was a Greek painter that migrated to Venice. Two other very famous painters with the name Moskos were active around the same period Elias Moskos and Leos Moskos. Leos Moskos ...

and

Leos Moskos Leo or Leos Moskos ( el, Λέος Μόσκος, 1620/30 – 1690) was a painter and educator. There were two other painters named Moskos active around the same period, Elias Moskos and Ioannis Moskos, who may have been his relatives. Indeed, L ...

. The painter was also a prominent teacher. He also had a sizable fortune. Fifty-two of his paintings survived. He represented the

Cretan School Cretan School describes an important school of icon painting, under the umbrella of post-Byzantine art, which flourished while Crete was under Venetian rule during the late Middle Ages, reaching its climax after the Fall of Constantinople, becom ...

and the Heptanese School. His works typically combine both schools. His work was heavily influenced by engravings from all over the world some were Flemish. His artistic activity ranged from 1629 to 1687. Most of his remaining works are in Greece and Italy. Jacob was a biblical figure from the old testament. He had a vision of a ladder or staircase reaching into heaven with angels traveling up and down the ladder. He heard the voice of God blessing him from the top of the ladder. God told Jacob he would have good luck and to keep his faith. Countless artists depicted the old testament scene. The theme was adopted by Flemish artists. Rafael Sadeler was a Renaissance Flemish engraver. He was from

Antwerp Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504,

. He was active from 1575 to 1632. He was a prominent member of the

Sadeler family The Sadeler family were the largest, and probably the most successful of the dynasties of Flemish engravers that were dominant in Northern European printmaking in the later 16th and 17th centuries, as both artists and publishers. As with othe ...

. He was active in

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...

, and

Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western States of Germany, state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 m ...

. His brother was famous engraver Jan Sadeler. The engravings of the

heavily influenced the Greek art of the Heptanese School. Rafael Sadeler introduced German and Flemish art to the artistic community of Venice.

Maerten de Vos Maerten de Vos, Maerten de Vos the Elder or Marten de Vos (1532 – 4 December 1603)Maerten de Vos
at the

was a Flemish painter. His work heavily influenced the engravings of the

. Rafael Sadeler used

Maerten de Vos Maerten de Vos, Maerten de Vos the Elder or Marten de Vos (1532 – 4 December 1603)Maerten de Vos
at the

's version of Jacob's later for inspiration. He created his own version with similar characteristics. Moskos in turn used Rafael Sadeler's engraving as innovation for his master piece. The work came from a church in Zakynthos. It was one of the panels of an

iconostasis In Eastern Christianity, an iconostasis ( gr, εἰκονοστάσιον) is a wall of icons and religious paintings, separating the nave from the sanctuary in a Church (building), church. ''Iconostasis'' also refers to a portable icon stand t ...

The work of art can be found at the

Byzantine and Christian Museum The Byzantine and Christian Museum ( el, Βυζαντινό και Χριστιανικό Μουσείο, links=no) is situated at Vassilissis Sofias Avenue in Athens, Greece. It was founded in 1914, and houses more than 25,000 exhibits with rare ...

Description

The materials used for the painting were tempera paint and wood panel. The height of the icon is 70 cm (27.6 in) and the width is 48 cm (18.9 in). Moskos added a sunset to the background of the painting. A castle on a mountain is present in the engraving and the painting. The background to our right also features similar characteristics in both the engraving and the painting. The landscape differs slightly in the Moskos. A Baroque Rococo like decoration adorns the panel. The figure of Jacob is smaller in the Moskos. The artist animates the sketch by adding color to the printed engraving. Moskos humanizes the celestial figures. The artwork offers a clear three-dimensional image. Dreaming Jacob is greeted by an angel. The artist shows considerable knowledge about painting the human figure. Jacob's legs are sculpturesque. The angles reflect a childlike quality. The folds of fabric and coloration of the garments create a cohesive flow with fluttering lines. The heavenly figures float in a weightless setting. The work captivates the audience and brings Greek art out of the

Cretan school Cretan School describes an important school of icon painting, under the umbrella of post-Byzantine art, which flourished while Crete was under Venetian rule during the late Middle Ages, reaching its climax after the Fall of Constantinople, becom ...

into the more refined Heptanese School of painting.

Gallery

File:Jakob's Ladder Raphael Sadeler (I).png, Jakob's Ladder R. Sadeler File:Jakobs ladder Van Iacob en Esau (serietitel) Geschiedenis van Jakob en Esau (serietitel) Den Grooten Figuer-Bibel (..) (serietitel), RP-P-1982-306-50.jpg, Jakobs ladder

Maerten de Vos Maerten de Vos, Maerten de Vos the Elder or Marten de Vos (1532 – 4 December 1603)Maerten de Vos
at the

References

{{Heptanese School (painting) 17th-century paintings Paintings in Greece Paintings of the Heptanese School