Guardroom with the Deliverance of Saint Peter

Guardroom with the Deliverance of Saint Peter is housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. The painting, executed by David Teniers the Younger in 1645, is recorded in the museum’s collection as a work of oil on panel measuring 55.2 × 75.9 cm. Neither the museum’s catalogue entry nor the accompanying scholarly references disclose an explicit accession or inventory number for the piece, and no exhibition record specific to this work is cited in the available sources. Consequently, the only verifiable provenance detail is its current location within the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s European paintings galleries.

Painted in 1645, Guardroom with the Deliverance of Saint Peter is an oil on canvas by David Teniers the Younger that merges the Flemish genre tradition of military interiors with a specific biblical narrative. The composition centers on a dimly lit guardroom characterized by rough stone walls and a cluttered floor strewn with helmets, pots, and a red cloth. In the foreground, soldiers in armor and casual attire occupy the space, while two figures in fine clothing converse near a table, creating a visual contrast between the mundane and the significant.

A dog rests among the discarded military gear, adding to the scene's lived-in atmosphere. The painting's narrative focus is revealed in the background, where a window opens onto a bright exterior scene depicting the miraculous release of Saint Peter from prison. Teniers utilizes this juxtaposition of a dark, chaotic interior against a luminous, orderly exterior to frame the religious event within a familiar, earthly setting.

This work exemplifies the artist's mature style, where he frequently adapted religious and historical subjects into contemporary Flemish contexts, demonstrating his mastery of texture, light, and the integration of complex narratives into genre scenes.