Martyrdom of the Maccabee Brothers and Zeal of Mattathias, Mortier, circa 1700

This original copperplate engraving from Pieter Mortier's illustrated Bible, Amsterdam circa 1700, shows two biblical scenes on one sheet: 2 Maccabees 7:1, the martyrdom of the seven brothers and their mother, and 1 Maccabees 2:23, the zeal of Mattathias. The upper scene illustrates 2 Maccabees chapter 7, the martyrdom of the seven brothers who refused to break the Law, and the admirable constancy of their mother, who encouraged each of them. The tortures take place in a crowded hall before the enthroned king, with smoke rising from a cauldron.

The lower scene shows 1 Maccabees chapter 2, verse 23, the zeal of Mattathias, who struck down a Jew about to sacrifice on the pagan altar at Modein, the act that began the Maccabean revolt. Mattathias lunges with his weapon at the altar while the onlookers recoil. Each scene carries its own engraved caption with the scripture reference in Dutch and French, and the sheet is numbered 140 in the lower margin.

Pieter Mortier's Bible, published in Amsterdam circa 1700 as the Historie des Ouden en Nieuwen Testaments, is one of the most ambitious illustrated Bibles of the Dutch Baroque. Its many scenes were engraved on copper after designs by leading artists of the day, among them Gerard Hoet, Arnold Houbraken and Bernard Picart, and set two to a sheet within engraved frames that give each plate its distinctive architectural look. This sheet is signed in the lower margin by Bernard Picart as designer, with the engraving signed by M. Pool. The sheet is printed on laid paper with full margins, and the reverse is blank.

A sheet like this suits a study, a library or a reading room, and it pairs naturally with other plates from the Mortier Bible for anyone building a sequence on the Maccabees. The paired scenes and engraved frames look particularly handsome in a simple dark wood frame with a generous mount.

The sheet is in good condition for its age, with light toning, a few small spots and a faint mark in the left margin; the image itself is clean and strong.

This is an original antique print, not a modern reproduction. This item is sold unframed.