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Wit, Jacob de
Council Chamber in Royal Palace, Amsterdam (Moses and the Seventy Elders) Salle du conseil du palais royal, Amsterdam (Moïse et les soixante-dix anciens)
1735 1735

Jacob de Wit was born in Amsterdam and received his early training as an apprentice to Albert van Spiers. He later studied with Jacob van Hal in Antwerp. He is known as a leading Rococo painter of interiors in eighteenth-century Holland. In 1735, de Wit was chosen by the City Council of Amsterdam to provide a decorative scheme for its Council Chambers. Moses and the Seventy Elders was one of the subjects to be depicted. The theme of Moses selecting his advisors would have been understood as an appropriate allusion to the role of the city councilors. Jacob de Wit prepared several small-scale representations of his plan for the completed piece. The sketch seen here is of interest because it presents the work as a tapestry, thus differing significantly from the mural that was ultimately executed. This work relates closely to two known oil sketches, one found in the Musée Picardie in Amiens, and the other Bijbels Museum in Amsterdam.

Wit, Jacob de
Amsterdam, Netherlands 1695- Amsterdam, Netherlands 1754 Amsterdam, Netherlands 1695- Amsterdam, Netherlands 1754
Council Chamber in Royal Palace, Amsterdam (Moses and the Seventy Elders) Salle du conseil du palais royal, Amsterdam (Moïse et les soixante-dix anciens)
1735 1735
gouache on paper Gouache sur papier
height / width: 28.60 x 45.80 cm; 11.26 x 18.03 in.
Purchase, George Taylor Richardson Memorial Fund, 1994 Achat, Fonds commémoratif George Taylor Richardson, 1994
37-092

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