Yale Center for British Art, Paul Mellon Collection
Copyright Status:
Public Domain
Accession Number:
B1978.43.11
Gallery Label:
A larger version of a painting shown in 1826 at the British Institution, this work of 1834 won a gold medal at the Paris Salon of 1835 and was called his “favourite picture” by the artist. Using the Bible and Byron’s verse drama Heaven and Earth (1821) as sources, John Martin re-creates the biblical flood story amid extraordinary astronomical circumstances, depicting the sun, moon, and a comet in conjunction. In an effort to reconstruct geological conditions, the artist also noted that “relative to the scale of proportion, viz. the figures and trees, the highest mountain in the Picture will be found to be 15,000 Ft., the next in height 10,000 Ft., and the middle ground perpendicular rock 4,000 feet.” On one of the rock ledges in the background, Noah’s ark sits barely visible, illumined by the last rays of the sun, while in the center of the composition, a lightning bolt strikes a blasphemer whose wife attempts to cover his mouth with her hand to silence his sacrilegious curses. Gallery label for installation of YCBA collection, 2016