The Seed Falling by the Wayside
1574
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
1574
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
The Seed Falling by the Wayside is a 1574 by Philip Galle, a Renaissance work, held at Cleveland Museum of Art.
A farmer naps against a tree while a tiny devil plucks seeds from his chest. Birds peck at scattered grain on rocky ground. This is one of four prints illustrating a Bible story about how people receive—or ignore—God’s word. The artist turned the lesson into a small, dramatic scene: the devil is almost playful, like a trickster in a folktale. The work was made in Antwerp when religious images were both teaching tools and popular art. To see how other artists showed everyday life in the Netherlands, look up *subject: netherlands*.
