Skip to main content

Corrado Giaquinto, 'The Brazen Serpent', 1743-4

Key facts
Full title The Brazen Serpent
Artist Corrado Giaquinto
Artist dates 1703 - 1766
Series Modelli for Frescoes in S. Croce in Gerusalemme, Rome
Date made 1743-4
Medium and support oil on canvas
Dimensions 136.5 × 95 cm
Acquisition credit Bought, 1987
Inventory number NG6515
Location Room 40
Collection Main Collection
The Brazen Serpent
Corrado Giaquinto
/

According to the Old Testament Book of Numbers the Israelites, tired of walking through the desert in search of the Promised Land, criticised both Moses (their leader) and God. God punished them by sending a plague of venomous snakes to bite them, causing the death of many. When the Israelites repented, God instructed Moses to erect a bronze serpent which instantly cured those who looked at it.

Moses, identifiable by the two rays of light emanating from his head, gestures towards the serpent coiled around a pole. Some men and women stare upwards seeking salvation while others are sprawled on the ground, suffering the effects of the serpents’ poison.

This is a modello, or highly finished painted sketch, for a fresco in the apse of the basilica of Santa Croce in Gerusalemme, Rome. As with the related Moses Striking the Rock, also in the National Gallery, the dimensions are slightly larger than is usual for a painted sketch. This is probably so that the design could be approved before its enlargement in fresco.

Download image
Download low-resolution image

Download a low-resolution copy of this image for personal use.

License this image

License and download a high-resolution image for reproductions up to A3 size from the National Gallery Picture Library.

License image
Download low-resolution image

This image is licensed for non-commercial use under a Creative Commons agreement.

Examples of non-commercial use are:

  • Research, private study, or for internal circulation within an educational organisation (such as a school, college or university)
  • Non-profit publications, personal websites, blogs, and social media

The image file is 800 pixels on the longest side.

As a charity, we depend upon the generosity of individuals to ensure the collection continues to engage and inspire. Help keep us free by making a donation today.

Download low-resolution image

You must agree to the Creative Commons terms and conditions to download this image.

Creative Commons Logo

Modelli for Frescoes in S. Croce in Gerusalemme, Rome

/

These two paintings are modelli, or presentation pieces, for frescoes in the basilica of Santa Croce in Gerusalemme in Rome. As part of the restoration of the church, which began in 1741, Giaquinto painted canvases for the nave’s ceiling and frescoes for the lower walls of the apse. In preparation for the commission, Giaquinto first painted bozzetti, or sketches, and then modelli for approval by the Pope and the procurator of the Cistercian Order, Raimondo Besozzi. The National Gallery has two of these modelli, featuring scenes of Moses’ miracles on his way to the Promised Land. The modelli enable us to reimagine the original colour scheme of the frescoes, which have been damaged by humidity and unsuccessful nineteenth-century restorations.

The relic of the True Cross brought back from the Holy Land by Helen, mother of the first Christian Roman Emperor (Constantine), provided the central subject of the church’s decorative scheme. The basilica had been built on the site of Helen’s villa, where the relics were originally housed.