276 THE STORIES OF NOTED PAINTINGS. 



THE TRANSFIGURATION. 



By RAPHAEL (born 1483, died 1520). The original is in the 

 Vatican at Rome. This is the best work of the greatest master 

 of Italian painting. It was unfinished at the time of his death ; 

 still it was thought worthy to be placed beside his body as it was 

 laid out for public view. There is here represented the mystery 

 of Christ's transfiguration on Mount Tabor. 



"And after six days Jesus taketh Peter, and James, and John, 

 his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mountain apart. 



And was transfigured before them ; and his face did shine as 

 the sun, and his raiment was white as the light. 



And, behold, there appeared unto them Moses and Elias, talk- 

 ing with him." Matthew, 17: 1-3. 



As a most striking contrast to this glorious manifestation of 

 the divinity of the " Son of Man," the artist has introduced be- 

 neath it the scene of the pitiful attempt and failure of the 

 disciples to cast out the evil spirit from the demoniac boy. 

 When Christ was informed of this on coming down from the 

 mountain he could not resist that bitter cry, " O faithless and 

 perverse generation, how long shall I be with you ? how long 

 shall I suffer you ? bring him hither to me." 



BATHSHEBA AT HER TOILET. 



By ANDREA DAL FKISO (born 1551, died 1611). One evening 

 as King David was walking on the roof of his palace, he saw at 

 a neighboring window " a woman washing herself, and she was 

 very beautiful to look upon." Now the good king was old 

 enough to know better than to be disturbed by such a trifling cir- 

 cumstance. But he really did go and misbehave himself so 

 much so that he found her husband, Uriah the Hittite, very 

 much in his way ; and he had the poor man exposed in the most 

 dangerous place at the very next battle. The consequence was 

 that there was another widow in Israel, whom David took as one 

 of his wives. This was the mother of Solomon the same Bath- 

 sheba whom David first saw as in the lovely and luxurious 

 picture drawn by the nephew and pupil of the great Paul 

 Veronese. 



