/internal/media/dispatcher/4589/fullSamson's Revengec. 1730/1740[Johann Georg Platzer]Johann Georg PlatzerOil on copper A fraction of a second is captured here: the very next moment the Philistines’ palatial temple will have collapsed, burying many people underneath. The catalyst of this catastrophe is Samson, who is shown tearing down the pillars in the center of the scene. His story is told in the Book of Judges in the Old Testament: after having been betrayed by Delilah, robbed of his might, and blinded, he eventually regains his strength and immediately uses it to wreak his vengeance on the Philistines. Although densely populated scenes are characteristic of Platzer’s oeuvre and have always been highly coveted by collectors, the artist has carried the concept to extremes here: it almost appears as though it is not Samson’s strength but rather the vast crowd of people that reduces the building - reminiscent of a sacred structure from the Baroque period - to rubble.Paintinghttps://sammlungtest.belvedere.at/objects/8210/rdf