John Martin

In the Bible, Moses calls down ten plagues before the pharaoh is persuaded to free the enslaved Israelites. This work, one of Martin's grandest paintings, depicts the seventh: "And Moses stretched forward his rod toward heaven, and the Lord sent thunder and hail, and fire rained down onto the earth." Moses and his brother Aaron are at the left upon the foreground balustrade while the anguished Egyptians, including the pharaoh, cower amidst the towering buildings of Thebes. Inspired by Turner, Martin produced a series of these dramatic ancient or biblical scenes. In this case, he drew upon some of the earliest illustrated publications on Egyptian monuments to create an authentic setting.