Supper at Emmaus

Maker David Wilkie (Scottish, 1785 - 1841)

ClassificationsPAINTINGS

Date1841

Mediumoil on millboard

Dimensions24 x 20 in. (61 x 50.8 cm.)

DescriptionThis painting refers to a popular biblical story from St. Luke's Gospel and shows the resurrected Christ breaking the bread at the center. Wilkie began this painting while in Jerusalem, one of the stops he made on an extended trip to the Near East in 1840–41.

Credit LineThe Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens. Gift of Anne and Tooey Durning in memory of their grandmothers, Mabel B. Roberts and Lola F. Durning

Label TextWilkie began this painting while in Jerusalem, one of the stops he made on an extended trip to the Near East in 1840–41. His travels were part of a campaign that he hoped would lead to a revolution in religious painting, one in which first-hand observation of the landscapes, architecture, and peoples of the Holy Lands would be used to create historically accurate Biblical scenes. While areas of the painting, particularly some of the faces and costumes, are filled with intricate detail, the remainder is only sketched in.
Intending to finish the work in his London studio, the artist died on the voyage home.

Status

On view

Object number2013.14