Jacob More

The Deluge

1787

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Not on display
Artist
Jacob More c.1740–1793
Medium
Oil paint on canvas
Dimensions
Support: 1504 x 2046 x 37 mm
Collection
Tate
Acquisition
Purchased with assistance from Tate Patrons and Tate Members 2008
Reference
T12758

Display caption

More’s paintings were admired for their celebration of the dramatic beauty and power of nature. Here he creates a mysterious, tonal image of watery grey-green on the popular artistic theme of the deluge. A deluge legend, where a great flood is sent as divine retribution to destroy a civilisation, is common to many faiths and cultures. The best known in Britain is the biblical account in the Book of Genesis, where God sends a flood to kill all life, but instructs Noah to build a large vessel, the Ark, to save his family and a representation of the world’s creatures.

Gallery label, March 2010

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