John Martin’s painting "Belshazzar’s Feast"

E133723

John Martin’s painting "Belshazzar’s Feast" is a dramatic 19th-century Romantic depiction of the biblical king Belshazzar witnessing the ominous writing on the wall foretelling his downfall.

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John Martin’s painting "Belshazzar’s Feast" canonical 1

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Statements (45)

Predicate Object
instanceOf Romantic painting
painting
artForm oil painting
artisticStyle dramatic
sublime
theatrical
basedOn Belshazzar’s feast narrative
Book of Daniel
countryOfOrigin United Kingdom
creator John Martin
culturalContext 19th-century British art
depicts Belshazzar
biblical scene
writing on the wall
depictsEvent Belshazzar’s Feast
surface form: Belshazzar’s feast
depictsMoment appearance of the writing on the wall
genre history painting
influencedBy Romantic fascination with the sublime
apocalyptic imagery
languageOfInscription Hebrew
mainSubject apocalyptic vision
divine judgment
downfall of a king
movement Romanticism
notableFor dramatic sense of scale
grandiose composition
spectacular lighting effects
partOf John Martin’s biblical paintings
portrays Belshazzar
surface form: King Belshazzar of Babylon

banquet scene
terrified courtiers
religiousTradition Christianity
scripturalSource Tanakh
surface form: Hebrew Bible

Tanakh
surface form: Old Testament
setIn Babylon
setInPeriod Neo-Babylonian Empire
symbolizes fragility of royal power
inevitability of judgment
theme divine intervention
hubris and punishment
mortality of earthly power
title Belshazzar’s Feast
uses architectural fantasy
strong chiaroscuro
vast architectural scale

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Referenced by (1)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Belshazzar subjectOf John Martin’s painting "Belshazzar’s Feast"