''Moses Leaving for Egypt'' is a fresco by the Italian Renaissance painter

Pietro Perugino Pietro Perugino (, ; – 1523), born Pietro Vannucci, was an Italian Renaissance Painting, painter of the Umbrian school, who developed some of the qualities that found classic expression in the High Renaissance. Raphael was his most famous pup ...

and his workshop, executed around 1482 and located in the Sistine Chapel,

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

. It depicts a journey by the prophet

Moses Moses hbo, מֹשֶׁה, Mōše; also known as Moshe or Moshe Rabbeinu (Mishnaic Hebrew: מֹשֶׁה רַבֵּינוּ, ); syr, ܡܘܫܐ, Mūše; ar, موسى, Mūsā; grc, Mωϋσῆς, Mōÿsēs () is considered the most important pro ...

History

The commission of the work originated in 1480, when Perugino was decorating a chapel in the Old St. Peter's Basilica in

Pope Sixtus IV Pope Sixtus IV ( it, Sisto IV: 21 July 1414 – 12 August 1484), born Francesco della Rovere, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 9 August 1471 to his death in August 1484. His accomplishments as pope include ...

was pleased by his work, and decided to commission him also the decoration of the new Chapel he had built in the Vatican Palace. Due to the size of the work, Perugino was later joined by a group of painters from Florence, including

Botticelli Alessandro di Mariano di Vanni Filipepi ( – May 17, 1510), known as Sandro Botticelli (, ), was an Italian painter of the Early Renaissance. Botticelli's posthumous reputation suffered until the late 19th century, when he was rediscovered ...

Ghirlandaio Ghirlandaio is the surname of a family of Renaissance Italian painters: * Domenico Ghirlandaio (1449–1494), painter of fresco cycles and Michelangelo's teacher * Davide Ghirlandaio (1452–1525), younger brother of Domenico * Benedetto Ghirlandai ...

and others. Perugino, Viaggio di Mosè in Egitto 05

Perugino's assistants in the Sistine Chapel included Pinturicchio. Some figures in the fresco were traditionally attributed to him, but this has been disputed by 20th-century art historians. They were painted by Andrea d'Assisi, Rocco Zoppo or, less likely,

Lo Spagna Lo Spagna (died ''c.'' 1529), "the Spaniard" in Italian, was a painter of the High Renaissance, active in central Italy. His name was Giovanni di Pietro, but he was known as ''Lo Spagna'' because he was born in Spain. After Raphael, he was a ma ...

Bartolomeo della Gatta Bartolomeo della Gatta (1448–1502), born Pietro di Antonio Dei, was an Italian (Florentine) painter, illuminator, and architect. He was the son of a goldsmith. He was a colleague of Fra Bartolommeo. In 1468, Bartolomeo became a monk in the O ...

, other Perugino's collaborators of the time.

Description

The fresco depicting the voyage of

is the first on the wall right to the altar, and faces the '' Baptism of Christ'' on the opposite wall. The painting shows Moses (dressing in yellow and green as in the other frescoes of the cycle) leaving for Egypt, after he had been exiled from Midian, with

Zipporah Zipporah, or Tzipora (; he, צִפּוֹרָה, ''Ṣīppōrā'', "bird"),, ''Sepphōra''; ar, صفورة, ''Ṣaffūrah'' is mentioned in the Book of Exodus as the wife of Moses, and the daughter of Reuel/Jethro, the priest and prince of Midi ...

to his right. In the center, an angel asks him to circumcise his son

Eliezer Eliezer (, "Help/Court of El") was the name of at least three different individuals in the Bible. Eliezer of Damascus Eliezer of Damascus () was, according to the Targums, the son of Nimrod. Eliezer was head of the patriarch Abraham's househo ...

(scene on the right), as a sign of the alliance between

Yahweh Yahweh *''Yahwe'', was the national god of ancient Israel and Judah. The origins of his worship reach at least to the early Iron Age, and likely to the Late Bronze Age if not somewhat earlier, and in the oldest biblical literature he posse ...

and the

Israelites The Israelites (; , , ) were a group of Semitic-speaking tribes in the ancient Near East who, during the Iron Age, inhabited a part of Canaan. The earliest recorded evidence of a people by the name of Israel appears in the Merneptah Stele o ...

. The baptism, depicted on the opposite fresco, was in fact considered by several early Christian writers, including

Augustine Augustine of Hippo ( , ; la, Aurelius Augustinus Hipponensis; 13 November 354 – 28 August 430), also known as Saint Augustine, was a theologian and philosopher of Berbers, Berber origin and the bishop of Hippo Regius in Numidia (Roman pr ...

, as a kind of "spiritual circumcision". The ceremony is on the right, and includes Zipporah. In the right background

and Zipporah are greeting

Jethro Jethro is a male given name meaning "overflow". It is derived from the Hebrew word ''Yithrô''. People named Jethro * Kenneth C. "Jethro" Burns (1920–1989), mandolin player in satirical country music duo Homer and Jethro * Jethro Franklin ...

before leaving. Natural elements include the hill landscape in the background, characterized by thin trees (including a palm, a symbol of Christian sacrifice), and the birds: two of them are mating, an allusion to the renovations cycles of the nature. On the left background is a group of shepherds. The dames with flying dresses were a common element of Florentine early Renaissance painting, used also by

and

References

Sources

* {{Sistine Chapel 1482 paintings Paintings by Pietro Perugino Sistine Chapel wall frescoes Paintings of Moses Angels in art Birds in art Camels in art Sheep in art Dance in art Dogs in art Zipporah