The Tower of Babel, 1563 by Pieter Bruegel the Elder

About the artwork Painted in 1563, this work depicts the unfinished tower rising from a rocky outcrop above a sprawling harbor city, with King Nimrod and his retinue inspecting the construction in the foreground. Bruegel renders the structure as a vast spiraling ziggurat combining Roman arches with elements drawn from the Colosseum, populated by countless tiny figures and cranes at work on its upper levels. The painting is held at the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna. About the artist Pieter Bruegel the Elder was a Flemish Renaissance painter known for his detailed landscapes and scenes of everyday peasant life. He is regarded as one of the most significant Northern European artists of the 16th century, influential for his innovative composition and narrative detail.