The Capture of Samson

1609–10

This subject of this panel comes from a story in the Hebrew Bible in which the mighty Samson awakes to find that his lover, Delilah, has cut off his hair, the source of his strength. Rubens drew from ancient Roman sculpture for Samson’s contorted pose, while the strong contrast of light and dark recalls the work of Italian painter Tintoretto.

Public domain · CC0
Free to download and reuse. Image courtesy of Art Institute of Chicago.

Artist

Peter Paul Rubens (Flemish, 1577-1640)

Date

1609–10

Medium

Oil on panel

Dimensions

50.4 × 66.4 cm (19 3/4 × 26 1/8 in.); Framed: 73.3 × 89.5 × 12.1 cm (28 7/8 × 35 1/4 × 4 3/4 in.)

Origin

Flanders

Collection

Art Institute of Chicago

Credit

Robert A. Waller Memorial Fund