Samson and Delilah

Description

In another portrayal of the dangerous power of women, here Brosamer depicted the biblical scene of Delilah betraying Samson. This engraving is similar in scale to the artist’s nearby Phyllis and Aristotle (1923.203), and the two works may have been conceived as a pair. Renowned for his strength, Samson unwisely shared the source of his power—his hair—with his lover, the treacherous Delilah. While the Bible verses (Judges 16: 17–18) specify that Samson will lose his strength when his hair is shaved off, here Deliliah uses a more feminine tool, scissors.

Samson and Delilah

Hans Brosamer

1545

Accession Number

80765

Medium

Engraving in black on ivory laid paper

Dimensions

Image/plate: 8 × 9.7 cm (3 3/16 × 3 7/8 in.); Sheet: 8.4 × 10 cm (3 5/16 × 3 15/16 in.)

Classification

engraving

Museum

The Art Institute of Chicago

Chicago, United States

Credit Line

Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Potter Palmer