TIEPOLO, Giovanni Battista
(b. 1696, Venezia, d. 1770, Madrid)

The Sacrifice of Melchizedek

1740-42
Oil on canvas, 1000 x 525 cm
Parrocchiale, Verolanuova

The Sacrifice of Melchizedek is shown here as a pendant to the Gathering of Manna. The Priest-King of Salem brings Abraham bread and wine on the evening following the Battle of the Kings, and blesses him. Abraham, who kneels before him in armor, and the army to the right are a reminder of the battle which went before. To the left, we see the civilian population, including women, children and the elderly, while a triumphal procession is already approaching from behind the altar.