De Israëlieten steken de Jordaan over met de Ark des Verbonds 1607

This 1607 etching by Sisto Badalocchio depicts a scene from the Old Testament story of the Israelites crossing the Jordan River. The Israelites, led by Moses, are seen carrying the Ark of the Covenant, a sacred chest containing the tablets of the Ten Commandments. The scene is set in a landscape with a river in the background and a group of men in the foreground, some of them carrying the Ark, others observing from the side. The Ark is represented as a small, portable box or chest. The use of etching, a printing technique that creates lines by using acid to eat away at a metal plate, results in a detailed and precise image, characteristic of the Baroque period. This is a work that demonstrates the strength of the art of etching and the enduring appeal of Biblical stories in art.