Skip to content

Home Library Gallery Codex Practices Tetra Search Community

Loading Lumitheca…

About Help & FAQ Contact Privacy & cookiesTerms Community guidelines

Gallery

Discover historical illustrations by subject, artist and book.

Visual journeys

View all journeys →

Blake’s Book of Urizen

Creation and rebellion in Blake’s illuminated plates.

Nielsen’s East of the Sun

Norwegian fairy tales illustrated by Kay Nielsen.

Gnostic Spirit Drawings

Four colour drawings from a 1908 Gnostic text.

Doré’s Dante

From the dark wood to Paradise with Gustave Doré.

The Kingdom of the Gods

Ethelwynne Quail’s visions of the spirit world.

Vassos’s Phobia

Art Deco studies of fear by John Vassos.

Browse illustrations

Search illustrations

Filter & explore

Subject

Artist

Source book

Order

276 illustrations

A solitary robed traveller stands among towering trunks, exposed roots and dark foliage, turning his face toward a narrow opening in the wood. — Gustave Doré
A solitary robed traveller stands among towering trunks, exposed roots and dark foliage, turning his face toward a narrow opening in the wood.
Dante's Inferno

A kneeling traveller and a standing woman face several pale women appearing over clouds. — Gustave Doré
A kneeling traveller and a standing woman face several pale women appearing over clouds.
Purgatory and Paradise: The Vision of Dante

Two small robed figures stand on a rocky height beneath a wide night sky, with uneven ground and distant peaks below. — Gustave Doré
Two small robed figures stand on a rocky height beneath a wide night sky, with uneven ground and distant peaks below.
Dante's Inferno

A host of armed winged figures falls through clouds beneath a bright opening. — Gustave Doré
A foreground warrior plunges headlong among falling bodies, spread wings and diagonal weapons.
Paradise Lost: Illustrated by Gustave Doré

A winged figure stands above a burning landscape beside a seated companion. — Gustave Doré
The upright rebel dominates a landscape of flame and broken rock, while a second figure remains lower beside him.
Paradise Lost: Illustrated by Gustave Doré

An armed winged leader addresses a mass of figures across a rocky landscape. — Gustave Doré
The leader’s raised gesture gathers a dispersed company into an answering host.
Paradise Lost: Illustrated by Gustave Doré

A dense multitude of winged figures rises through clouds. — Gustave Doré
Overlapping wings and small bodies fill the air, so that the individual figures become the texture of a vast ascent.
Paradise Lost: Illustrated by Gustave Doré

A ruler sits above a crowded assembly in a great pillared hall. — Gustave Doré
The throne and the converging architecture establish a centre of authority inside an enormous hall.
Paradise Lost: Illustrated by Gustave Doré

A winged traveller confronts seated guardians in a dark rocky passage. — Gustave Doré
The standing traveller and the two guardians form a tense group at the threshold.
Paradise Lost: Illustrated by Gustave Doré

A winged figure struggles among steep rocks and a turbulent void. — Gustave Doré
The figure’s limbs and wings work against a landscape that offers no stable road.
Paradise Lost: Illustrated by Gustave Doré

A bat-winged figure descends towards a distant round world through rays of light. — Gustave Doré
The dark wings cut across a luminous atmosphere, directing the eye towards the world beneath them.
Paradise Lost: Illustrated by Gustave Doré

A winged figure stands against a rocky height with one hand behind his head. — Gustave Doré
The standing body leans back against the rock, one hand braced beside it and the other lifted behind the head.
Paradise Lost: Illustrated by Gustave Doré

A winged figure watches a lush garden from a shaded height among great trees. — Gustave Doré
The winged observer stands at the right beneath spreading branches, looking towards the garden below.
Paradise Lost: Illustrated by Gustave Doré

Two figures sit near a stream within a wooded garden. — Gustave Doré
The two bodies rest within a landscape of water and foliage, making the garden a lived place rather than an empty emblem.
Paradise Lost: Illustrated by Gustave Doré

Adam and Eve look towards a bright winged visitor in a shaded woodland. — Gustave Doré
The visitor appears as a bright figure beyond the shaded foreground, while the human pair turn towards the approaching shape.
Paradise Lost: Illustrated by Gustave Doré

A winged teacher raises a hand before a seated human couple. — Gustave Doré
The raised hand of the winged teacher gives the small group a clear direction of attention.
Paradise Lost: Illustrated by Gustave Doré

An armoured angel strikes at a fallen winged opponent amid armed companions. — Gustave Doré
The central warrior lifts his weapon over an opponent who has dropped low on the clouds.
Paradise Lost: Illustrated by Gustave Doré

Large reptiles occupy a shore beneath a cloud-filled sky and distant birds. — Gustave Doré
The foreground reptiles lie close to the water, their heavy bodies contrasting with the small birds in the sky.
Paradise Lost: Illustrated by Gustave Doré

A vast sea creature arches between rocky outcrops and spouts water. — Gustave Doré
The creature’s body stretches across the sea like a ridge of land, with its spout rising against the cloudy sky.
Paradise Lost: Illustrated by Gustave Doré

A bat-winged figure looks down at a serpent coiled on the ground. — Gustave Doré
The serpent’s dark coil lies directly beneath the bent figure, creating a quiet meeting between two sharply different bodies.
Paradise Lost: Illustrated by Gustave Doré

A standing man and a reclining woman grieve beneath immense tree trunks. — Gustave Doré
The two figures are separated by posture: one stands with arms raised towards his head, while the other leans back beside the roots.
Paradise Lost: Illustrated by Gustave Doré

A hall fills with intertwined serpents beneath a distant throne. — Gustave Doré
Coiling bodies occupy the foreground and gather towards the throne, replacing the organised ranks seen in the earlier council with a tangled mass.
Paradise Lost: Illustrated by Gustave Doré

Adam and Eve stand and sit among roots while an angel waits in the distance. — Gustave Doré
The human figures remain close to the great roots, while the angel waits farther along the dark route through the trees.
Paradise Lost: Illustrated by Gustave Doré

On the shore a kneeling traveller faces a bearded elder while his companion stands behind him. The open water and pale sky set the three bodies apart. — Gustave Doré
On the shore a kneeling traveller faces a bearded elder while his companion stands behind him.
Purgatory and Paradise: The Vision of Dante

A winged steersman rises over a close company of pale figures arriving across the water. Two travellers watch from the left, near reeds on the bank. — Gustave Doré
A winged steersman rises over a close company of pale figures arriving across the water.
Purgatory and Paradise: The Vision of Dante

A seated figure bends his head towards his knees beneath a rocky overhang. Other resting figures gather behind him while two robed travellers approach. — Gustave Doré
A seated figure bends his head towards his knees beneath a rocky overhang.
Purgatory and Paradise: The Vision of Dante

An immense eagle carries a cloaked figure through a bright region of cloud. Spread feathers and the traveller’s bent limbs create a diagonal ascent. — Gustave Doré
An immense eagle carries a cloaked figure through a bright region of cloud.
Purgatory and Paradise: The Vision of Dante

A woman with a spider’s many legs lies amid a rocky scene while the two poets look down. Human limbs and the transformed body crowd the foreground. — Gustave Doré
A woman with a spider’s many legs lies amid a rocky scene while the two poets look down.
Purgatory and Paradise: The Vision of Dante

Seated and cloaked figures line a narrow ledge against a sheer wall. Dante and Virgil stand among them while the cliff drops into a pale chasm. — Gustave Doré
Seated and cloaked figures line a narrow ledge against a sheer wall.
Purgatory and Paradise: The Vision of Dante

A lightly draped figure faces two robed travellers amid rolling banks of smoke. A bare rock at the left gives the obscured meeting a small point of stability. — Gustave Doré
A lightly draped figure faces two robed travellers amid rolling banks of smoke.
Purgatory and Paradise: The Vision of Dante

Three figures move through a dark rocky passage filled with curling smoke. One extends an arm, while the two travellers remain close behind. — Gustave Doré
Three figures move through a dark rocky passage filled with curling smoke.
Purgatory and Paradise: The Vision of Dante

A kneeling traveller bends towards a prone figure among many bodies stretched along a narrow rocky ledge. His companion stands upright behind him. — Gustave Doré
A kneeling traveller bends towards a prone figure among many bodies stretched along a narrow rocky ledge.
Purgatory and Paradise: The Vision of Dante

Two standing poets step carefully through a dense company of figures lying face down. The ledge recedes beside a steep, dark drop. — Gustave Doré
Two standing poets step carefully through a dense company of figures lying face down.
Purgatory and Paradise: The Vision of Dante

Two small figures stand below immense concentric ranks of winged beings surrounding a radiant centre. Clouds form a base beneath the circular assembly. — Gustave Doré
Two small figures stand below immense concentric ranks of winged beings surrounding a radiant centre.
Purgatory and Paradise: The Vision of Dante

Three robed travellers stand on a rocky edge beside curling flames. Pale figures gather within the fire at the left. — Gustave Doré
Three robed travellers stand on a rocky edge beside curling flames.
Purgatory and Paradise: The Vision of Dante

A long-haired woman leans into a stream beside reeds and a wooded bank, holding the traveller beneath the water. The broad current occupies the foreground. — Gustave Doré
A long-haired woman leans into a stream beside reeds and a wooded bank, holding the traveller beneath the water.
Purgatory and Paradise: The Vision of Dante

A traveller bends down beside the stream while a seated guide and a group of women watch within a wooded clearing. Another figure waits farther back. — Gustave Doré
A traveller bends down beside the stream while a seated guide and a group of women watch within a wooded clearing.
Purgatory and Paradise: The Vision of Dante

A luminous company descends through clouds towards the foreground, where several draped figures become individually visible. Rays fill the upper distance. — Gustave Doré
A luminous company descends through clouds towards the foreground, where several draped figures become individually visible.
Purgatory and Paradise: The Vision of Dante

Two great circular companies of winged figures surround two small observers on a cloud. The upper ring encloses a bright opening above their heads. — Gustave Doré
Two great circular companies of winged figures surround two small observers on a cloud.
Purgatory and Paradise: The Vision of Dante

Winged figures gather into a tall cross above clouds, with Dante and Beatrice watching from the lower right. The bright form dominates the pale sky. — Gustave Doré
Winged figures gather into a tall cross above clouds, with Dante and Beatrice watching from the lower right.
Purgatory and Paradise: The Vision of Dante

Several sweeping ranks of winged figures curve across the sky around two distant observers. The nearest company raises arms and wings in a broad arc. — Gustave Doré
Several sweeping ranks of winged figures curve across the sky around two distant observers.
Purgatory and Paradise: The Vision of Dante

Winged figures rise around a luminous upper gathering while a small pair watches from the clouds below. Layered bodies fill nearly the whole field. — Gustave Doré
Winged figures rise around a luminous upper gathering while a small pair watches from the clouds below.
Purgatory and Paradise: The Vision of Dante

A crowned woman sits with joined hands on a cloud beneath countless angelic heads. Two observers below look towards her across a company of winged figures. — Gustave Doré
A crowned woman sits with joined hands on a cloud beneath countless angelic heads.
Purgatory and Paradise: The Vision of Dante

A sword-bearing angel stands in a break of dazzling light while two human figures bend away beneath the trees. — Gustave Doré
A sword-bearing angel stands in a break of dazzling light while two human figures bend away beneath the trees.
The Bible Gallery

A standing man looks towards a fallen body in a rocky hollow under a turbulent sky. — Gustave Doré
A standing man looks towards a fallen body in a rocky hollow under a turbulent sky.
The Bible Gallery

A crowded group clings to a rock as waves surround them; a large cat holds its young above the water nearby. — Gustave Doré
A crowded group clings to a rock as waves surround them; a large cat holds its young above the water nearby.
The Bible Gallery

An immense stepped tower rises above a crowded foreground of people and scattered masonry. — Gustave Doré
An immense stepped tower rises above a crowded foreground of people and scattered masonry.
The Bible Gallery

Lot presses forward with a daughter on either arm while his wife stands alone behind them, looking towards the burning city. — Gustave Doré
Lot presses forward with a daughter on either arm while his wife stands alone behind them, looking towards the burning city.
The Bible Gallery

48 of 276 shown

Gallery: Historical Illustrations & Book Art | Lumitheca