![Lucas van Valckenborgh - The Tower of Babel [1594] by Gandalf's Gallery](http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7296/11364499043_f0887eb83c.jpg)
Artists of all periods have been fascinated by the Tower of Babel. According to Genesis, humanity’s first major architectural project ended in catastrophe. God is described as having destroyed the tower even before it was completed in order to put an end to mankind’s pride once and for all. In Lucas van Valckenborgh’s painting there is no hint of the story’s dramatic conclusion. Like most painters before him, he shows work on the tower (for which he has adopted Pieter Bruegel the Elder’s pyramid-like structure) quickly proceeding. In the foreground we see King Nimrod, the tower’s builder, who wanted to reach to heaven with his megalomaniacal construction project. In doing so, he was rebelling against the omnipotence of God. Nimrod seduced the people of Babel into helping with the work by claiming his projects were designed exclusively for their protection, and urging them to listen only to themselves rather than to God. However, Valckenborgh’s painting places the emphasis not on the moral of self-destruction but on the splendour of the tower, city, and harbour, which he renders with miniature-like precision.
[Musée du Louvre, Paris - Oil on wood, 41 x 56 cm]