France / 1648
The Holy Family on the Steps
The Cleveland Museum of Art catalogs The Holy Family on the Steps as painting (France · 1648).
Poussin placed small wax models in a box pierced with holes to study lighting effects.
A CLOSER LOOK
The museum identifies this painting as oil on canvas and credits Nicolas Poussin (French, 1594–1665).
The museum's collection notes: This deceptively simple composition represents a complex meditation on the Holy Family’s role in the redemption of humanity. At the center, Mary presents the Christ child to the world. At the left, Saint Elizabeth leans forward to foretell his eventual death, while her son, Saint John the Baptist, offers Jesus an apple, signifying humanity’s fall from grace in the Garden of Eden. At the right, Saint Joseph holds a compass, a sign of his occupation as a carpenter and also symbolic of God the Father. Poussin developed his composition meticulously and deliberately, using clear primary colors, simple forms, and a geometric organization to express
FOLLOW THE EVIDENCE
The Cleveland Museum of ArtThe Holy Family on the StepsOriginal explanation based on the sources above. Images carry their own reuse terms.