The Copper Serpent is an 1841 painting by Fyodor Bruni based on the Bible. The Jewish people during forty years of wandering in the desert lost their faith and began to show discontent. In response, the Almighty sent poisonous snakes to the grumbling serpents. For their healing, God ordered the prophet to expose a copper image of a reptile, looking at which, a stung person could be saved from death.

The work impresses with the size and scale of the idea. It is difficult to single out a single compositional center in it. The main character – a copper snake – is located in the far corner, in the shade. And in the foreground, the author depicted several stories united by a common plot. At the very edge of the canvas, a young man sprawled in agony. A deadly serpent coils around his leg, his mouth open in a silent cry of pain or curse.

The painting The Copper Serpent by Fyodor Bruni – Old Testament story

On the right side is a crowd of people distraught with horror: a wife clings to her husband, an old man crawls away from a deadly reptile, an old woman tries to cover a baby. On the left side there are also scenes of grief and suffering: parents embracing their dying son in despair, an orphan girl clasping a stone, a man trying to open the eyes of a dying woman. The entire foreground of the picture is filled with fear, despair and hopelessness.

A little deeper, the work takes on a slightly different sound. People looking at the saving figure are dressed in bright clothes, as if they had already been touched by the grace of the Lord. In the background, in the center, is Moses, pointing to a bronze serpent, and the high priest Elizar. Unlike the rest of the characters, they look determined and stern, personifying a higher power. The surrounding landscape very accurately reflects the general mood of the work: lifeless rocks, lead-gray heavy clouds, from which poisonous snakes pour. The whole picture is permeated with a sense of sorrow and horror from the inevitability of God’s punishment.

Name of the painting: “Copper Serpent”.
Author: Fedor Antonovich Bruni (1799-1875).
Year of writing: 1841
Size: 565 x 852 cm.
Style: Academicism.
Genre: Historical. Religious.
Technique: Oil.
Material: Canvas.

Fedor Bruni is a talented Russian painter of Italian origin.

He began work on the painting “The Bronze Serpent” in 1827 in Rome. In the mid-1830s, the master had to take a break, as he was called to St. Petersburg to teach at the Academy of Arts. A few years later, Bruni returned to Italy and finished the canvas, which took a total of fifteen years to complete.

The finished picture was first presented to the Italian audience, who received it very favorably. Then she went to Russia, where she exhibited first at the Winter Palace, and then at the Academy of Arts. The Copper Serpent made a great impression on Nicholas I.

As a result, the emperor acquired the work for a considerable price, and the author was awarded the Order of St. Vladimir. The painting “The Copper Serpent” by Fyodor Bruni is a grandiose masterpiece, at first sight inspiring not only horror of God’s punishment, but also admiration for the author’s talent. In 2000-2002 The work has undergone extensive restoration. Now the updated canvas can be seen in the exposition of the Russian Museum.