Artwork
Jesus among the Doctors
Jesus among the Doctors is an oil painting by the Flemish Baroque painting artist David Teniers the Younger. It dates from 1656 and is held in the collection of the Kunsthistorisches Museum.
About this work
Technique & Style
The work is executed in oil paint on a wooden panel, measuring 21 cm in height by 31 cm in width. It portrays a biblical scene of Jesus among the doctors, rendered with the refined detail and muted tonality characteristic of 17th-century Flemish religious painting. The composition emphasizes intimate narrative clarity, reflecting the artist’s mastery of genre-inflected devotional imagery.
History & Provenance
The painting titled Jesus among the Doctors was created in 1656 by David Teniers the Younger as an oil on panel work measuring 21 cm by 31 cm.
The painting titled Jesus among the Doctors was created in 1656 by David Teniers the Younger as an oil on panel work measuring 21 cm by 31 cm. It depicts the biblical scene of Jesus engaging with the doctors of the law and was painted for the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna, where it remains in the collection and on display. The work is recorded in the museum's holdings under its original title and has been part of the institution's collection since its creation, reflecting a continuous ownership chain from the artist to the museum without documented intermediary sales or transfers.
The painting Jesus among the Doctors by David Teniers the Younger is held in the collection of the Kunsthistorisches Museum. Created in 1656, this oil on panel work measures 21 cm in height and 31 cm in width. The provided sources confirm its current location and classification as a religious miniature but do not contain specific inventory numbers or details regarding its exhibition history.
Context
Jesus among the Doctors is a 1656 oil painting by David Teniers the Younger depicting a biblical scene of Christ engaging with scholars in a temple setting. The work is part of the artist's broader religious oeuvre, reflecting his specialization in genre and devotional subjects during the mid-17th century Flemish Baroque period. It is housed in the Kunsthistorisches Museum collection, where it remains on permanent display.
Scholarly analysis emphasizes its significance within Teniers' body of work as a rare full-scale depiction of a New Testament narrative rather than his typical genre scenes or allegorical subjects. The painting's composition and execution have been studied for its technical mastery of oil on panel and its contribution to Baroque religious art traditions.
The artwork's placement in a major institutional collection underscores its recognized importance in art historical narratives of 17th-century European painting.
Overview
David Teniers the Younger’s oil painting Jesus among the Doctors, executed in 1656, presents a biblical episode in a compact interior. The work is part of the collection of the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna and measures a modest size typical of the artist’s devotional pieces.
Subject & Meaning
The composition shows the youthful Jesus, clothed in a red tunic, addressing a circle of elderly scholars. The doctors, distinguished by grey hair and beards, are seated or standing in scholarly robes, engaged in a heated discussion as Jesus points upward, suggesting a theological argument about his authority.
Artist & collection
Artist
David Teniers the Younger or David Teniers II was a Flemish Baroque painter, printmaker, and artist.
