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The Third Plague of Egypt: Gnats (Exodus 8:17)
This page from Walters manuscript W.106 depicts a scene from Exodus, in which God rained plagues upon Egypt. After plagues of blood and frogs, Pharaoh hardened his heart again and would not let the Israelites leave Egypt. God told Moses to tell Aaron to stretch forth his rod and strike the dust of the earth that it may become gnats throughout the land of Egypt. Here, Moses, horned (a sign of his encounter with divinity), carries the rod, while Aaron, wearing the miter of a priest, stands behind him. The gnats arise en masse out of the dust from which they were made and attack Pharaoh, seated and crowned, and his retinue.
Inscription
Provenance
Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object.
Léon Gruel, Paris [date and mode of acquisition unknown]; Henry Walters, Baltimore, June 6, 1903, by purchase [see The Diaries of George Lucas]; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
Exhibitions
| 1992 | Royalty in Medieval Miniatures. The Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore. |
Geographies
United Kingdom, England, Oxford (Place of Origin)
Measurements
H: 5 3/16 x W: 3 3/4 in. (13.2 x 9.5 cm)
Credit Line
Acquired by Henry Walters, 1903
Location in Museum
Not on view
Accession Number
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
W.106.5R
