When Nicolas Poussin painted The Blind of Jericho in 1650, he was already renowned for his measured approach to biblical narrative, but this canvas stands out for its rare focus on a miracle of healing. The subject, the moment Christ restores sight to the blind men outside Jericho, was seldom chosen by major artists of the Baroque period. Unlike the more frequently depicted Raising of Lazarus or Healing of the Paralytic, this scene offered Poussin an opportunity to explore compassion and transformation in a single, charged instant.

The painting is also notable for its uncertain provenance: no contemporary documentation survives to tell us who first commissioned it or where it was originally displayed. The scene unfolds at the city gates, where Christ, surrounded by a small group of followers, extends his hand toward the kneeling blind men. Poussin captures the moment of contact: one blind man’s face is lifted in hope, while another’s hands grope toward the light. The artist arranges the figures in a frieze-like composition, recalling ancient reliefs, and bathes the central group in a gentle, directional light that isolates the miracle from the bustle of Jericho’s walls.

The gestures are deliberate: Christ’s calm authority contrasts with the supplicants’ desperate grasp. Compared to Rembrandt’s more emotional Healing of the Blind Man of Jericho, Poussin’s version is restrained, focusing on clarity and order rather than dramatic shadow or turmoil. The subsequent history of The Blind of Jericho is shrouded in uncertainty. While some scholars have suggested it was painted for a Roman patron during Poussin’s final years in Italy, no definitive record has been found.

The painting’s medium is also unrecorded, though it is presumed to be oil on canvas, in keeping with Poussin’s other works of the period. Over the centuries, the painting passed through several private collections, and its attribution was at times questioned, though stylistic analysis now firmly places it within Poussin’s late oeuvre. Today, it is recognized as a testament to the artist’s enduring interest in the moral and psychological dimensions of sacred history.