Photo Record
Images
Metadata
Object Name |
Transparency, Lantern Slide |
Object ID Number |
1991.303.20 |
Description |
Magic lantern slide depicting the Tower of Babel and the moment in the Bible (from the book of Genesis) when God confounds human speech, so that people spoke different languages. After the Great Flood, the remaining united humanity spoke one language and migrated eastward to Shinar. God confounded their speech in reaction to their pride in building a city and tower tall enough to reach Heaven. In the image, the Tower of Babel rises up above the clouds in the background. Below, in the foreground, people fall to their knees and one man raises his arms up, all with looks of distress and confusion. The image is a copy of a wood engraving by Gustave Dore, printed in black and white on glass and hand-tinted. The slide consists of a rectangular wooden frame with a circular cutout for the image/glass. Title printed on the side of the frame: "The Tower of Babel." The back of slide has a white sticker in the upper righthand corner with "20." printed in black ink on it. Handwritten in pencil on both sides of the frame is the number "27". On the opposite side of the frame, the number "33" is handwritten in pencil. The image is from a series of 241 wood engravings by Gustave Dore, created as illustrations for a deluxe edition (published in 1866) of the French translation of the Vulgate Bible, known as the "Bible de Tours" (originally published in 1843). Dore's original print was titled "The Confusion of Tongues." The Bible verses that correspond with the image depicted is Genesis 11:6-8. |
Date |
c. 1866-1889 |
Subjects |
Bible stories Clouds Construction Heaven Illustrations Language Pride Religious education Religious pictures Slides Speaking Towers |
People |
Dore, Gustav |