Idolatry of Manasseh and the Piety of King Josiah, Pieter Mortier, circa 1700

This original copperplate engraving from Pieter Mortier's illustrated Bible, Amsterdam circa 1700, shows two biblical scenes on one sheet: 2 Kings 21:2, the idolatry of King Manasseh, and 2 Kings 23:4, the piety of King Josiah. The upper scene illustrates 2 Kings chapter 21, verse 2, the idolatry of King Manasseh, who rebuilt the high places, set up altars to Baal and worshipped the host of heaven. Crowds bow and sacrifice before an idol on a tall pedestal, with smoke rising from altars in a broad square lined with palaces.

The lower scene shows 2 Kings chapter 23, verse 4, the reform of King Josiah, who ordered the vessels made for Baal to be brought out of the Temple and burned. Josiah stands commanding beside a carved altar where the idols and bones are consumed by fire, while his men break the images. Each scene carries its own engraved caption with the scripture reference in Dutch and French, and the sheet is numbered 113 in the lower margin.

Pieter Mortier, the Amsterdam publisher and bookseller, issued his illustrated Bible circa 1700 as a showpiece of Dutch Baroque printmaking. Its contributing artists included Gerard Hoet, Arnold Houbraken and Bernard Picart, and the plates present the biblical narrative as a sequence of theatrical scenes, crowded with figures and set among classical architecture and wide landscapes. This sheet is signed in the lower margin by Ottmar Elliger as designer, with the engraving signed by J. Baptist. The upper scene also carries the signature of Jan Luyken as engraver. The sheet is printed on laid paper with full margins, and the reverse is blank.

The sheet would suit a library, a study or a quiet corner of a living room, where its fine line work rewards close viewing. Hung in a group with other Mortier plates, it becomes part of a continuous illustrated narrative of the Books of Kings.

The sheet is in good condition for its age, with light toning, a small marginal spot, a faint corner crease and slightly frayed edges; the image itself is clean and strong.

This is an original antique print, not a modern reproduction. This item is sold unframed. Any framed or interior images are shown for presentation and inspiration only, unless the listing explicitly states that the item is sold framed.