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This painting shows the influence of Gerrit van Honthorst, the first master of the artist.
The subject of this picture is the Old Testament account of King Saul's conjuring the spirit of the prophet Samuel, with the help of the Witch of Endor, in order to request his advice on the eve of a battle against the Philistines (Samuel I, 28; 7-25). The sorceress successfully summoned the deceased prophet who was known for his wisdom, but Samuel had no solace to offer: he replied to Saul that "the Lord has departed from thee, and is become thine adversary."
For this ambitious and original composition, Stom chose the moment when the ghost of Samuel has just appeared to the living, and King Saul kneels and leans in to ask for his old mentor's insight. Samuel, standing in hieratic monumentality in the centre of the composition, is about to reveal his prophecy, his arm outstretched towards the sky to indicate the divine origin of his ill tidings.
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