Paolo Veronese 1528 – 1588

Moses Found

oil on canvas (57 × 43 cm) — c. 1580 Museo del Prado, Madrid

Paolo Veronese biography

This work is linked to Exodus 2:6

Pharaoh's daughter and her maidens have saved the basket with Moses from the river Nile. They wrap him in a cloth. Out of compassion, the daughter decides to take the boy home, even though she notes he is Hebrew.

Veronese (pseudonym of Paolo Caliari) added a dwarf to the scene. At the time, dwarfs were common at many European courts. Perhaps Veronese used the dwarf as an attribute to emphasise the royal nature of the company.

In the background an Italian town is visible.

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