Jezebel Promising Naboth's Vineyard to King Ahab

Lucas van Leyden · 1516/1519
National Gallery of Art, Washington

This woodcut belongs to Lucas van Leyden’s small series on the power of women, made around 1516–19. The bold black lines are cut in wood, and the room is a Dutch bedchamber.

King Ahab lies in bed with his face to the wall, a dish of food untouched beside him. Jezebel stands over him in a long veil and speaks. Through the window at the left, men raise stones over a kneeling man.

From the text

Ahab lay down on his bed, turned his face away and refused to eat (1 Kings 21:4)

“Get up, eat some food, and be cheerful, for I will get you the vineyard” (1 Kings 21:7)

Naboth was taken outside the city and stoned (1 Kings 21:13)

The artist’s own

A later moment of the story through the window

A curtained bed, a chair and a Dutch room

Jezebel in a long veil and train

Details

Jezebel

In a long veil, she stands over the bed and speaks.

Ahab

The king lies in bed, his head on the pillow.

The dish

A dish of food beside him.

Through the window

Men raise stones over a kneeling man.

Lucas van Leyden, Netherlandish, c. 1489/94–1533. National Gallery of Art, Washington (Rosenwald Collection, 1943.3.9092) · Woodcut · NGA Open Access: "Images of these works are available free of charge for any use, commercial or non-commercial, under Creative Commons Zero (CC0)." (NGA open data: published_images.csv openaccess = 1)

The verses

1 Kgs 21:4–8So Ahab went to his palace, sullen and angry because Naboth the Jezreelite had told him, “I will not give you the inheritance of my fathers.” He lay down on his bed, turned his face away, and refused to eat. Soon his wife Jezebel came in and asked, “Why are you so sullen that you refuse to eat?” Ahab answered, “Because I spoke to Naboth the Jezreelite and told him, ‘Give me your vineyard for silver, or if you wish, I will give you another vineyard in its place.’ And he replied, ‘I will not give you my vineyard!’” But his wife Jezebel said to him, “Do you not reign over Israel? Get up, eat some food, and be cheerful, for I will get you the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite.” Then Jezebel wrote letters in Ahab’s name, sealed them with his seal, and sent them to the elders and nobles who lived with Naboth in his city.

1 Kgs 21:13And the two scoundrels came in and sat opposite Naboth, and these men testified against him before the people, saying, “Naboth has cursed both God and the king!” So they took him outside the city and stoned him to death.