27 platesBlake’s Book of Urizen
Creation and rebellion in Blake’s illuminated plates.
Loading Lumitheca…
Gallery
Discover historical illustrations by subject, artist and book.
Visual journeys
View all journeys27 plates
22 platesNielsen’s East of the Sun
Norwegian fairy tales illustrated by Kay Nielsen.
4 platesGnostic Spirit Drawings
Four colour drawings from a 1908 Gnostic text.
24 platesDoré’s Dante
From the dark wood to Paradise with Gustave Doré.
10 platesThe Kingdom of the Gods
Ethelwynne Quail’s visions of the spirit world.
10 platesVassos’s Phobia
Art Deco studies of fear by John Vassos.
Browse illustrations
81 illustrations
Dante Lost in the Dark Wood
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
The Travellers Emerge beneath the Stars
Two small robed figures stand on a rocky height beneath a wide night sky, with uneven ground and distant peaks below.
Dante's Inferno
Camaralzaman Finds Badoura’s Talisman: Edmund Dulac
During the journey to Camaralzaman's homeland, the prince discovers a red inscribed stone tied into Badoura's girdle while she sleeps.
Princess Badoura: A Tale from the Arabian Nights
Unmadini Discovers the Exchanged Heads
Unmadini uses a life-restoring thread and incantation after her husband Devasharma and his friend Gunakar are killed on their journey.
Vikram and the Vampire
The Irishman Arrives at the Blue Mountains
An immense eagle spreads its wings above a mountainous landscape and distant towers.
The Yellow Fairy Book
Yama and Nachiketas: Nanda Lal Bose’s Dialogue with Death
Bose places Yama and Nachiketas in a close encounter divided by a dark opening and the strong warmth of the background.
Myths of the Hindus and Buddhists
The Return of Rama: Venkatappa’s Swan-Shaped Vehicle
The royal company travels through clouds in the great swan-shaped vehicle Pushpaka, beneath an expansive white canopy.
Myths of the Hindus and Buddhists
Satan Cast from Heaven
A foreground warrior plunges headlong among falling bodies, spread wings and diagonal weapons.
Paradise Lost: Illustrated by Gustave Doré
Sin and Death at Hell’s Gate
The standing traveller and the two guardians form a tense group at the threshold.
Paradise Lost: Illustrated by Gustave Doré
Eight of Cups
A cloaked traveller leaves eight standing cups and climbs toward rocky heights beneath a moon.
The Illustrated Key to the Tarot: The Veil of Divination
Satan Crosses Chaos
The figure’s limbs and wings work against a landscape that offers no stable road.
Paradise Lost: Illustrated by Gustave Doré
Tears before the Departure from Eden
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
The Angel Brings Souls to Shore
A winged steersman rises over a close company of pale figures arriving across the water.
Purgatory and Paradise: The Vision of Dante
Six of Swords
A ferryman poles a boat carrying two seated passengers and six upright swords toward a distant shore.
The Illustrated Key to the Tarot: The Veil of Divination
Belacqua Waits beneath the Rock
A seated figure bends his head towards his knees beneath a rocky overhang.
Purgatory and Paradise: The Vision of Dante
Arachne on the pavement of pride
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
The Ride through Walpurgis Night: Harry Clarke’s Faust
Two richly dressed riders move diagonally through a dark canopy on elongated creatures.
Faust
The Trial of Abraham’s Faith
Isaac carries a great bundle of firewood above his shoulder as Abraham walks beside him with a staff.
The Bible Gallery
The Star in the East
Three travellers ride camels above a distant line of companions, beneath a sky whose small bright star commands their attention.
The Bible Gallery
The Return of the Prodigal Son
A kneeling youth presses close to an older standing man whose arms extend around him, while a company of travellers and attendants approaches behind.
The Bible Gallery
The Journey to Emmaus
Three robed travellers walk together along an open road, their heads turned towards a conversation while the distant horizon remains low and pale.
The Bible Gallery
The Flight into Egypt
A woman holding an infant rides a donkey led by a man with a staff.
The Bible Gallery
Pia Asks to Be Remembered
A woman stands facing a robed traveller within a quiet stand of tall, slender trees.
Purgatory and Paradise: The Vision of Dante
The Departure of Isis from Byblos
Isis bends towards a decorated chest aboard a boat, her dark drapery falling in long folds among oars, ropes and painted fittings.
Myths and Legends of Ancient Egypt
Prince Siddhartha’s Departure: Abanindro Nath Tagore
A crowned rider reaches towards the neck of a pale horse as cloud-like forms gather around the animal's legs.
Myths of the Hindus and Buddhists
Dante in Profile
A laurel-crowned portrait shows Dante in profile, his long head covering and layered robes outlined against a dark background.
Dante's Inferno
Dante Follows Virgil
Two small travellers proceed into a deep wooded corridor between rough trunks and pale exposed roots.
Dante's Inferno
Dante and Virgil at Departing Day
Two figures pause near a slender tree as the last light fades above an open, distant landscape.
Dante's Inferno
Shelter behind the Monument Lid
The travellers stand close to a broad stone lid on a steep rocky edge, with dark vapour rising from the hollow below them.
Dante's Inferno
The First Steps across Cocytus
The two travellers stand among many heads emerging from a flat, dark surface beneath distant rocky walls.
Dante's Inferno
The Children Ask Their Father for Help
A seated man and several younger figures huddle in a dim chamber beneath a narrow barred window.
Dante's Inferno
Lucifer at the Centre of the Frozen Pit
A colossal winged figure rises behind the two small travellers, with exposed bodies embedded in the foreground ice.
Dante's Inferno
Sordello Listens to Virgil
A kneeling figure faces a standing robed man while a second traveller waits behind them.
Purgatory and Paradise: The Vision of Dante
The Nautilus Boat
A winged fairy sits in a great purple nautilus shell with long curved spines.
The Book of Fairy Poetry
Riding the White Bear
A pale bear carries a small rider through a snowy landscape beneath a huge blue curve of sky.
East of the Sun and West of the Moon
The North Wind over the Sea
A powerful pale figure strides above an immense curling wave.
East of the Sun and West of the Moon
The King’s Snow-Shoes
A long-bearded traveller strides on narrow snow-shoes with a staff in one hand.
East of the Sun and West of the Moon
Come Up into the Sky
A pale female figure appears beside a reclining youth within a small dark vignette.
Urania
The Dirge of Shimono Kani
A robed figure holds an instrument within a landscape of suspended forms and distant lights.
Time and the Gods
Pattering Leaves Danced
Small musicians and elongated dancing figures fill an elaborately patterned interior.
Time and the Gods
The inverted figure between dark mountains
An upside-down figure braces its hands on the rocky foreground while its torso curves against a dark mountain landscape.
The Book of Urizen
The Mountain Landscape of The Apparition
A solitary traveller stands on a rocky rise above a pale landscape.
Urania
Three Days along the Narrow Ledge
Several travellers follow a narrow ledge beside a pale pack animal.
The Last Book of Wonder
Flute Began to Play
A slender musician plays a long flute while balanced on the back of a fish-like vessel.
Weird Islands
The Relief Map of Palestine
Dark relief shading models the hills around a long north-south valley.
The Aquarian Gospel of Jesus the Christ
The Route across Asia: Western Section
A fine route line crosses a broad map of mountains, settlements and borders.
Beasts, Men and Gods
The Route across Asia: Eastern Section
A route line runs through a map labelled Siberia, Manchuria, Mongolia and Inner Mongolia.
Beasts, Men and Gods
The Moon and the Tiny Dream-Boat
A small figure sits within an elaborate curved vessel beside the edge of a huge yellow moon.
Dream Boats and Other Stories48 of 81 shown