Il Tintoretto 1518 – 1594

Cain and Abel

oil on canvas (149 × 196 cm) — 1550-53 Museum Gallerie dell'Accademia, Venice

Il Tintoretto biography

This work is linked to Genesis 4:8

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Cain and Abel were sons of Adam and Eve. Cain was a farmer, Abel was a shepherd. They both brought sacrifices before God, but Cain's offering was rejected. Cain then killed Abel.

Cain was cursed and spent the rest of his life wandering in the land Nod, east of Eden.

Tintoretto was a follower of Michelangelo and Titian. He painted in a style called mannerism, which followed after the Renaissance. The figure of Abel in this painting shows some resemblance to the Abel in Titian's depiction of Cain and Abel.

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