Jacob and Laban with His Daughters

This drawing is a preparatory study for the painting of the same title now in the Dulwich Picture Gallery, London (1676; inv. no. DPG205). The scene portrays the biblical story of Jacob, who, after working as a shepherd for seven years for his Uncle Laban under the agreement that he would be granted permission to marry Laban's daughter Rachel, was instead tricked into marrying Laban's elder daughter Leah. Here, Lorrain sketches the moment when Laban demands from Jacob another seven years of labor before allowing him to marry Rachel. The final composition in the Dulwich painting remains largely unchanged from this preliminary sketch. Jacob, identifiable by his shepherd's staff, gestures toward his well-tended flock of sheep in an attempt to appeal to his uncle, who is flanked by his daughters. A highly finished design for the same composition is in the Louvre (RF 4581). The Louvre sheet corresponds even more closely to the painting than the summarily executed Morgan sheet. Roethlisberger noted the Morgan drawing adds nothing further to the composition but that its execution and size is more in keeping with a preliminary study than with Claude's late drawings reproducing his paintings.