The Twelve Sons of Jacob (c. 1589): Art, History and Details

The Twelve Sons of Jacob (c. 1589) is in the Cleveland Museum of Art collection. The museum's creator attribution is Jacob de Gheyn II (Netherlandish, 1565–1629); Karel I van Mander (Netherlandish, 1548–1606); Jan Pitten (Dutch, active Amsterdam, 1588–1592).

The work and its context

The museum's open-access catalogue describes the work:

This series of prints presents the 12 sons of Jacob, each with an attribute and costume that denotes his character. According to the Old Testament, Jacob blessed each of his 12 sons, prophesizing the destiny of their tribe, and assigning them a parcel of land in Canaan (present-day Israel). The print series was made in the Netherlands in the late 1500s, a time of political struggle when Old Testament heroes were popular exemplars of fortitude and patience. The set includes Levi, Simeon, Judah, Zabulun, Isaacher, Gad, Asher, Naphtali, Joseph, and Benjamin. The CMA's set is lacking the plates for Dan and Ruben.

Object facts

• Title: The Twelve Sons of Jacob
• Date: c. 1589
• Creator attribution: Jacob de Gheyn II (Netherlandish, 1565–1629); Karel I van Mander (Netherlandish, 1548–1606); Jan Pitten (Dutch, active Amsterdam, 1588–1592)
• Culture: Netherlands
• Type: Print
• Technique: Set of 10 engravings
• Collection: Prints
• Department: Prints
• Accession number: 2024.145

A detail from the museum

Among the attributes for each of Jacob's sons are the crown of Judah, symbolizing his status as ancestor of Kings David and Solomon, and a flowing fountain for Joseph, referring to Joseph's blessing of a double inheritance from his father.

Collection credit

Carole W. and Charles B. Rosenblatt Endowment Fund

View the collection record

See the museum's photographs and full catalogue entry. Catalogue text is reproduced from the Cleveland Museum of Art's open-access data, with HTML formatting removed. This object and its supplied image are designated CC0.