Manna from Heaven, by Arthur Boyd Houghton, circa 1863. Print 33. 6¼ x 7½ inches. Proof wood engraving by the Dalziels; printed on India paper. [Click on the image to enlarge it.]
This is a generalized scene of the Israelites (Exodus 16: 1–36) receiving the miraculous food given to them by God. Houghton does not focus on the eating – with only a small child in the right foreground consuming a morsel – but concentrates instead on gathering the mysterious sustenance from the ground. The composition typifies his unconventional, informal grouping and is stylistically very similar to his evocation of the Oriental world in his version of The Arabian Nights (Ward, Lock [1865]). Houghton’s fascination with the innocence of children is also registered in this lyrical design, employing a sinuous line that prefigures the curvaceousness of Art Nouveau.
Scanned image and text by Simon Cooke. You may use this image without prior permission for any scholarly or educational purpose as long as you (1) credit the person who scanned it and (2) link to this URL in a web document or cite it in a print one.
Bibliography
Dalziels’ Bible Gallery. London: Routledge, 1881 [1880].
Created 4 August 2026