The painting by Tintoretto of the tense, muscular, near-naked bodies of Cain and Abel among the trees at moment when Cain has his dagger poised to strike is one of an old testament cycle painted for the Scuola della Trinita in Venice. The severed head of a calf is in the right foreground. The cycle was split up under Napoleonic rule, and this picture, together with Fall of Adam ( the Paradise of Tintoretto) from the same cycle, has been in the gallery of the Academy of Venice since 1812. Ruskin refers to this painting at MP I:79, MP I:386, and MP I:393.
Jacopo Robusti (Tintoretto) c.1518-94
Cain Slaying Abel (Caino Uccide Abele) c.1550-3
Oil on canvas, 149x196cm
Collection: Accademia, Venice
For a reproduction of this artistic work, please consult: Bernari, Carlo, L'opera completa del Tintoretto, (Milano: Rizzoli Editore, 1970), pl.9