The Adoration of the Golden Calf

This picture was painted at the height of the artistÂ’s career, when he was creating works which epitomise 'classical landscape' in the most elevated sense of the term - grand in scale, majestic in form, antique or Biblical in theme. Although the picture is well documented it is not familiar either to public or scholars. Its acquisition is therefore something of a rediscovery, especially as the picture has been cleaned and can be seen in its full splendour. One of Claude's larger works, it is a version of an even more monumental picture which he painted in 1653 for the young Roman nobleman, Carlo Cardelli. This work was acquired with assistance from the Wolfson Foundation.