Art UK has updated its cookies policy. By using this website you are agreeing to the use of cookies. To find out more read our updated Use of Cookies policy and our updated Privacy policy.

A Landscape with Tobias and the Angel

Image credit: The National Gallery, London

How you can use this image

This image can be used for non-commercial research or private study purposes, and other UK exceptions to copyright permitted to users based in the United Kingdom under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, as amended and revised. Any other type of use will need to be cleared with the rights holder(s).

Review the copyright credit lines that are located underneath the image, as these indicate who manages the copyright (©) within the artwork, and the photographic rights within the image.

The collection that owns the artwork may have more information on their own website about permitted uses and image licensing options.

Review our guidance pages which explain how you can reuse images, how to credit an image and how to find images in the public domain or with a Creative Commons licence available.

Buy a print or image licence

You can purchase this reproduction

If you have any products in your basket we recommend that you complete your purchase from Art UK before you leave our site to avoid losing your purchases.

Notes

Add or edit a note on this artwork that only you can see. You can find notes again by going to the ‘Notes’ section of your account.

This moody and evocative landscape is more than just a simple pastoral scene. The presence of the angel and the youth in the foreground is a clear sign that it represents the story of Tobias, from the Book of Tobit.

Tobit, who was blind, asked his son Tobias to go on a journey to collect a debt. He was escorted by the Archangel Raphael, who disguised his true identity, and by his dog. As Tobias crossed the River Tigris he was attacked by a fish. Raphael helped him catch it, instructing him to save the heart, liver and gall bladder. When Tobias returned home, Raphael told him to rub his father’s eyes with the gall. The old man’s sight was restored and Raphael revealed his true identity.

This picture almost certainly depicts Tobias carrying the fish under his arm, but the detail is unclear – it could just possibly be his dog, in which case this would then represent the moment just before he is attacked by the fish.

The National Gallery, London

London

Title

A Landscape with Tobias and the Angel

Date

1640-4

Medium

Oil on oak

Measurements

H 56.9 x W 88.5 cm

Accession number

NG72

Acquisition method

Holwell Carr Bequest, 1831

Work type

Painting

Tags

See a tag that’s incorrect or offensive? Challenge it and notify Art UK.

Help improve Art UK. Tag artworks and verify existing tags by joining the Tagger community.

Normally on display at

The National Gallery, London

Trafalgar Square, London, Greater London WC2N 5DN England

This venue is open to the public. Not all artworks are on display. If you want to see a particular artwork, please contact the venue.
View venue