“David and Goliath” by Gustave Doré from “The Holy Bible with Illustrations”

David and Goliath

Gustave Doré (1832-83), artist

N. Monvoisin, engraver

1866

Source: The Holy Bible

“And David put his hand in his bag, and too thence a stone, and slang it, and smote the Philistine in his forehead . . . David ran, and stood upon the Philistine, and took his sword . . . and slew him” (1 Samuel 17:49,51).

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Formatting and text by George P. Landow

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Doré's depiction of the biblical hero differs in several ways from sculptural ones of Bernini, Donatello, Michelangelo, and Verrochio: first, following a common approach in these bible illustrations, he places David against a crowd of people whereas the famous statues present him as a single figure. Second, Michelangelo and Verrochio present a nude young man as an ideal of male beauty, the David of Michelangelo depicted before the fight and Verrochio's afterwards with the head of Goliath at his feet. Bernini's David, who is in the midst of hurling his stone, wears (or barely wears) a tunic. Doré's David holds the head of the slain giant above his own, thereby panicking the Philistine army while emphasizing how much smaller he is than his dead opponent.

Bibliography

The Holy Bible with Illustrations by Gustave Doré. London: Cassel, Petter, and Galpin, 1866.

Last modified 18 February 2014