Jephthah and His Daughter Yale University Art Gallery

ca. 1828–32

On view, 2nd floor, American Art before 1900

Among the earliest American full-length figures in marble, these sculptures portray the Old Testament story of Jephthah. Before departing for battle, Jephthah had rashly promised in exchange for Israel’s victory over its enemies, the Ammonites, to sacrifice the first member of his household to greet him on his return. Hezekiah Augur shows the victorious warrior at the heart-stopping moment when he recognizes his only child moving innocently "to meet him with timbrels and with dances." In horror, Jephthah tries to cover his eyes with his cloak, but to no avail: ultimately, he was forced to honor his vow to God, and she was sacrificed.

Medium: Marble
Dimensions: 44 × 18 1/2 × 15 1/2 in. (111.8 × 47 × 39.4 cm)
Credit Line: Gift of the Citizens of New Haven
Accession Number: 1835.11a-b
Geography: Made in New Haven, Connecticut
Culture: American
Period: 19th century
Classification: Sculpture
Disclaimer: Note: This electronic record was created from historic documentation that does not necessarily reflect the Yale University Art Gallery’s complete or current knowledge about the object. Review and updating of records is ongoing.

Bibliography

American Art: Selections from the Yale University Art Gallery (New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Art Gallery, 2023), 15–16, fig. 6

Susan B. Matheson, Art for Yale: A History of the Yale University Art Gallery (New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Art Gallery, 2001), 23–24, fig. 21

Object copyright

No Copyright - United States

Additional information

Object/Work type

allegories, busts (sculpture), figures (representations), histories (visual works), human figures (visual works), marble, portraits, religious art

Subject

cloaks, deaths, families, men, women

Technical metadata and APIs

IIIF: Open in Mirador

View IIIF manifest

The International Image Interoperability Framework, or IIIF, is an open standard for delivering high-quality, attributed digital objects online at scale. Visit iiif.io to learn more
Linked Art: API response for this object

Linked Art is a Community working together to create a shared Model based on Linked Open Data to describe Art.