Flight into Egypt (figure study)

William Page's preparatory study depicts the biblical narrative of Mary, Joseph, and the Christ child's escape to Egypt. The composition features three figures and a horse rendered in pen on aged paper, showing Page's approach to classical religious subject matter. Page (1811–1885) was an American historical and portrait painter trained in the academic tradition who frequently drew from scriptural themes. This sketch demonstrates the artist's process of working out figural arrangement and narrative clarity before executing larger finished compositions, a standard practice among nineteenth-century academic painters.