Prékopa Ágnes (szerk.): Ars Decorativa 32. (Budapest, 2018)
Miklós GÁLOS: An Antonio Tempesta Rediscovered in the Collection of the Museum of Applied Arts, Budapest
clear that this rather feeble addition was painted on a plaster replacement. On the left and at the top of the picture, significant additions could be seen, while on the right, despite minor fractures and missing fragments, the work was more intact. {Fig. 6) The bluish material of the support, which did not appear to be glass at all but rather a thin stone slab, was an integral part of the composition. Unpainted, it represented the sea. In other parts of the composition, however, it was used to portray a shield or shirt or the fur of one of the many horses. At the time of discovery, we had already managed to surmise that the shattered support was indeed made of a precious stone, lapis lazuli. Even covered in grime, the original surface displayed elegant solutions and the stylistic marks of c. 1600. The main figure in the composition, which is divided by the unpainted parts of the support, is Moses, who stands on a cliff in the foreground and directs the events with the staff in his right hand. His red boots, golden brocade attire and reddish cloak give him an oriental touch. At his feet, in the foreground, a mother sits with her two children; next to her is a female figure holding a jug and gazing at Moses. As a repoussoir figure, a man wearing a turban points to the Egyptian army drowning in the sea. To the left is a group that has already escaped, with a dog wearing a red collar in front of them, and in the background their animals: sheep, goats and camels. The Egyptian army occupies the right side of the picture. Horses and riders are depicted with superb foreshortening. Shown against a forest of spears, they battle with the sea waves. The tiny figure of the pharaoh, portrayed in his chariot drawn by four horses, is dwarfed by Moses’s huge hand. In the water, drowning horses toss their heads. 7. Antonio Tempesta: The Garden of Eden with the Creation of Eve, oil on lapis lazuli, Budapest, Museum of Applied Arts (recto) 12
