Florentine school of the seventeenth century. Follower of Giovanni Biliverti. Joseph and Potiphar's wife. Oil on ...

Florentine school of the seventeenth century. Follower of Giovanni Biliverti. Joseph and Potiphar's wife. Oil on canvas. Painting based on the work of Biliverti that is kept in the Palazzo Pitti in Florence. The scene comes from the Old Testament (Genesis, 39, 7-14) and represents one of the best known episodes in the history of Joseph. After being sold by his brothers to the Ismailis, he was bought by Potiphar, captain of the Egyptian pharaoh. His qualities made him prosper in his service to the point that he was appointed steward of his house. Simultaneously, he drew the attention of his wife, who was claiming him: «It happened that he entered the house one day to do his office, and there was no one from home there. And she seized him by his clothes, saying: Sleep with me. So he left her clothes in her hands, and fled from her and left her. When he saw that she had left her clothes in her hands, and had fled out of her, he called those of the house, and spoke to them saying: Look, he has brought us a Hebrew to make fun of us . He came to me to sleep with me, and I called out loud; and seeing that I raised my voice and shouted, he left his clothes next to me, and fled and left. And she put Joseph's clothes next to her, until her master came to her house. This slander is at the origin of José's fall from grace and subsequent exaltation, because although he led him to jail, he was in prison when he revealed his ability to interpret dreams, which earned him the favor of the Pharaoh. In the painting we see José flee from the bed where Potiphar's wife is, who tries unsuccessfully to retain her servant by grabbing her clothes with one hand and her left arm with the other, which will be the object that will allow her to mount slander. Relining. 120 x 167 cm.