Caravaggio 1573 – 1610

The Sacrifice of Isaac (1605)

oil on canvas (116 × 173 cm) — c. 1605
private collection

This work is linked to Genesis 22:10

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Experts are not sure if this painting is by Caravaggio. It lacks the characteristic strong emotion of the earlier 1603 version. Nevertheless, the composition is strong. The angel arrives in the nick of time to convince Abraham not to kill his son. Abraham's grip on the boy's head is already weakening.

The work is one in the collection of Barbara Piasecka Johnson, a Polish immigrant who became heir to the Johnson & Johnson company.