Image Details

Galleria Borghese, Rome/Art Resource, NY

Moses the Lawgiver descends from Mt. Sinai with the Ten Commandments in hand. The divine light that illuminates his face in this painting by Italian artist Guido Reni (1575–1642) is a reminder that his every action is now guided by God. Moses has come a long way to get here. Indeed, his first act as an adult was to kill a man and hide the corpse. What did it require to transform the youthful vigilante into the lawgiver who led the Israelites out of Egypt?