Lot 1043 Dα

In Genesis 19:1-35, Lot is informed of the impending destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah by two angels, who tell him to leave the city with his family. Shortly after, Sodom and Gomorrah are destroyed by fire and brimstone, and smoke billows out from the earth like from a kiln. All the inhabitants and everything that grew in the fields around the city is destroyed. Since Lot's wife and all the men of the city die during the destruction, his beautiful young daughters decide to ply their father with wine from a pitcher and sleep with him to secure the continuation of the family line. The depiction of Lot and his daughters was a popular motif in the art of the Baroque era.
This large copper panel illustrates the entire biblical story simultaneously. In the left we see the angel warning Lot and his family to leave. This scene was painted by Frans III, and displays his typically elongated figures. The main scene with Lot and his daughters was painted by Hieronymus III, and the plump figures with rounded shoulders are typical of his style. We recognise the practised hand of Frans Francken II, head of the studio, in the skilful glaze painting of the turbans and the food upon the table.