Art, Symbol & Imagination
Christ Fainting under the Cross
A burdened figure sinks beneath a large wooden cross while a kneeling woman and several standing men gather beside the road. Doré makes the cross a strong diagonal whose weight interrupts the upright bodies of the surrounding company. The central lowered posture brings the carried object into direct relation with exhaustion. The printed caption identifies Christ fainting under the cross. The design gives the narrated procession a moment of bodily failure, with assistance, observation and coercion sharing the same immediate space rather than disappearing into a distant view of the route.
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Citation
Gustave Doré (design). "Christ Fainting under the Cross" [editorial title]. In The Bible Gallery, Gustave Dore; Talbot W. Chambers. Undated Cassell & Company edition; one hundred illustrations with supplied descriptive letterpress, undated edition, Cassell & Company, Limited. Source scan leaf 357. Lumitheca. /gallery/image/bible-dore-356
Source details
Editorial title and description. Source details from the Library catalogue.
Complete plate reviewed against the scan; printed caption supplies subject. Crop excludes surrounding paper and separate caption without changing scan tone. Letterpress theology is not adopted as historical proof.
Sources
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The Bible GalleryGustave Dore; Talbot W. ChambersUndated editionMore from this book
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Cite this illustration
Gustave Doré (design). Christ Fainting under the Cross. The Bible Gallery. Scan leaf 357. Lumitheca. https://lumitheca.com/gallery/image/bible-dore-356