The Seed finding Good Earth
Philip Galle · 1574 · Cleveland Museum of Art
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This is one of a series of four prints portraying the biblical parable of the sower, made in Antwerp (in present-day Belgium) at the end of the 1500s. The parable compares types of soil to people in the world: one hardened; one fickle; one distracted by things of the world; and one with an open heart, ready to accept God. The last sower, depicted here, presents fertile soil for his seed resulting in the bountiful harvest seen in the background. He is accompanied by figures representing theological virtues Faith, Hope, and Charity. The sower’s prosperity due to his fertile land and heart is represented by his act of charity, providing money to a passing beggar.
The museum’s own description, in English. Licence: CC0
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Details
- Maker
- Philip Galle (Flemish, 1537–1612), after Gerard van Groeningen (Flemish)
- Date
- 1574
- Medium
- engraving
- Place of origin
- Netherlands
- Held by
- Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland · Not on view
- Credit line
- L. E. Holden Fund
Image: Cleveland Museum of Art, CC0
