Mozes wordt aangesproken door God op de berg Horeb 1633

Nicolaes de Bruyn made this engraving of Moses being spoken to by God on Mount Horeb. It’s an image of a biblical story, but also, importantly, a landscape. De Bruyn was working in the Netherlands, a country with a strong Calvinist tradition that shaped both its social structure and its art. One aspect of that was a focus on direct engagement with the Bible. Here, Moses, a central figure in the Old Testament, is placed in a detailed and realistic natural environment. The geography, with its rolling hills and distant mountains, doesn't necessarily reflect the actual Mount Horeb, but the choice to show a humble shepherd hearing the voice of God in his everyday environment speaks to the Protestant values of the time. Engravings like this were often made as part of larger series, potentially aimed at a rising middle class with new access to religious imagery. The combination of religious subject matter with close observation reflects the ways in which art was shaped by the beliefs and social conditions of the time. As art historians, we look at these clues, using sources like letters or other documents, to better understand the complex relationship between art and society.