The Raising of the Daughter of Jairus

In an incident from the New Testament, related in the Gospels of Mark and Luke, Christ raises from the dead the 12-year-old daughter of Jairus, a leader of the synagogue. The model for Christ has been identified as Joseph Mair, who played the role of the Lord in the famous Oberammergau Passion Play, and the artist's first wife, Emma Kitzinger, is thought to have posed for the daughter of Jairus. In the right corner, a realistically painted beetle is crawling towards the girl's pillow, and on her arm a fly achieves the same trompe l'oeil. Max was born in Prague, now the capital of the Czech Republic, but was trained in Vienna, Austria, and Munich, Germany, where he later became a professor. He is particularly noted for his sentimental, religious subjects.