Design for the Seventh Plague of Egypt (ink & w/c on paper)

This very detailed watercolour is characteristic of the subjects that made John Martin famous, though its tiny size contrasts with the huge scale of his best-known oil paintings. The picture illustrates the Seventh Plague of Egypt described in the Book of Exodus in the Bible. Moses, on the left, stretches up his staff to heaven, calling down thunder, hail and fire. The Egyptian fleet in the harbour is being swamped by the storm. Martin used illustrations of archaeological excavations to provide details for the impressive buildings bordering the harbour.