The Explosion in the Alchemist's Laboratory

• 17th–18th century
• Justus Gustav van Bentum, Dutch
• 46.25 x 37.5 in.
  Oil on canvas
• On display in Making Modernity
• Gift of Fisher Scientific International
• Fisher Collection
• FA 2000.001.285
• No known copyright restrictions

Description

A bearded alchemist’s hands stretch upward as his chemical apparatus explodes, illuminating his face, the laboratory furnace, the rafters, and the instruments around him. His wife is shielding herself, bending away from the fire while a young child grips her skirt.