Jan Steen’s Histories

Jan Steen is one of the most beloved painters of the Dutch Golden Age. He is known for his humorous depictions of everyday life: disorderly households, noisy inns, quack doctors tending to lovesick girls, and parents who set a bad example for their children. But few people know that Steen also made history paintings, which depict scenes from the Bible, classical mythology or Roman history. Thes…