Bruiloft te Kana 1670 - 1682

Melchior Küsel produced this engraving of the Wedding at Cana in the mid-17th century. It shows Christ's miracle in the context of a lavish society. The Bible doesn’t mention the setting of the Wedding at Cana, but Küsel has reimagined it in front of a grand palace in what looks like Rome. The eye is drawn past the wedding guests to the obelisk in the far distance. The architecture is classical, a revival of the monumental style of the Roman Empire, which would have been very familiar to Küsel’s audience. The engraver has imagined the biblical story as happening in his own world. By emphasizing the opulence of the setting, Küsel perhaps questions the Church’s relationship to wealth. To understand this work better, historians might consult records of the artist’s life and of the religious context in which he was working. Art provides a window into the social and institutional contexts of its time.