Tile tableau The conversion of Saul (later Paul) (also called: Saul Tableau)
Workshop Den Salm (Guido Andries/Guido di Savino, working from 1508 to 1541; Franchois Frans)
Antwerp, 1547
Painted and enamelled earthenware (majolica)
MAS, AV.1571
Bought from Lambert van Rijswijck-Bogaerts, 1890
Thrown from his horse
The Saul Tableau depicts a Biblical scene: on the way from Jerusalem to Damascus, the Roman Saul, who was persecuting Christians, was blinded by a thunderbolt and thrown from his horse. It is God Himself who is casting the lightning above. Saul's fellow travellers and their horses react terrified. In the background of the wooded setting, you can see a city (Jerusalem? Damascus?). After his fall and vision, Saul would preach the Christian faith, with his new name: Paul.
This tile tableau of over 1 by 2 metres has 98 tiles in majolica, colourful and enamelled earthenware. The panel is attributed to the workshop Den Salm. This was founded in 1520 on Kammenstraat by Guido Andries (Guido di Savino), a Venetian majolica craftsman who was at the cradle of the majolica industry in Antwerp in the early 16th century.
The conversion of Saul - God and lightning
The conversion of Saul - year on the lower right (1547)
The conversion of Saul - detail from framing ornaments
