The Ten Plagues of Egypt, Part One - Esther

I read somewhere that the subject of the Ten Plagues is underrepresented in the world of art. Whoever wrote it was quite correct, but I know the reason why. & the reason I know, is because I’m one of the fools who have tackled it. The reason is very simple: THERE ARE TEN OF THEM. 

Doing a nice wee triptych is nothing, NOTHING, compared with a series of ten. It’s a mammoth task. I assure you, it’s not that you don’t have ideas; I somewhat had too many (as did God) But you do want to unify them in some way, make them seem like a set. This means that although each image has to have its own theme, it ought to have something in common with the other nine. Perhaps this is achieved through a colour scheme, style, a composition or pattern. 

Anyway, the Ten Plagues in art might be rare, but as we’ve seen in previous blogs, many artists have depicted the various ravages of other plagues throughout history – take a bow, Middle Ages! One wonders, come time, what great art will exist to record the plague of our own times, covid. 

It has been tricky to avoid repeating the artist for this one, because as I say they tend to do the whole lot. I take my hat off to each & every one of them; even if the art isn’t great, they deserve credit for perseverance alone.

Next week’s blog will be all about my own Ten Plagues & the utter slog that it was, no matter how ultimately satisfying. I do wish I’d had Avner Moriah’s idea (above) & done the whole lot in one though…

1: Water is Changed Into Blood, James Tissot (1902?)

The trajectory of the plague types always seems to me to be a little test God gives himself, as if he’s learning more about the nature of his human creations. Here, I think God may have peaked too early. I’m tempted to investigate the role of smell in the bible, because this must have reeked. Admittedly, not as badly as the death of the livestock, but it would have been mightily unpleasant. Of all the plagues, more artists seem to achieve an image of horror with the plague of blood. It seems to speak to our knowledge that you’re not supposed to see blood. It’s not supposed to be on the outside. Whereas for the Egyptians, the situation would be dire - having nothing clean to drink – for us, images of blood (even this insipid red) inspire horror & dread. 

2: The Plague of Frogs Begins in Egypt, Artist unknown, (c. 1475)

If ever there was an inaccurate picture of a scene real or imaginary, it’s this. Two beardy old white blokes in robes gesture oddly & prod blousily at some hapless amphibians who are just minding their own business in the not-very-deep river. It’s never Ancient Egypt & that is never a plague. The whole point was to teach the Egyptians (who aren’t these guys) a lesson in obedience & a puddle-full of inert frogs is hardly going to inconvenience anyone. It’s no wonder God had to resort to eight more.

3: Lice, William de Brailes (active c. 1230- c. 1260)

God ups his game. A smidge more unpleasant than frogs, plague number three is variously described as gnats, fleas or lice. None of these would be great. As for de Brailes, it is believed he had some ministries & as well as illustrating the bible & may also have been a scribe. Here we see what are referred to as gnats rising up from the dry dirt. Moses is the one with the horns – as mentioned in another blog, in earlier times, this was a sign of the divine.

4: The Plague of Flies, Jan Luyken (1700) 

Okay, it's not great but is God even trying here? Has he run out of ideas?

5: Pestilence of Livestock, Elisheva Nesis (2020)

No he has not! & how dare you even consider this a possibility! God is back & this time it’s diseasey. 

6: Plague of Boils, Golden Haggadah (1300s)

Anyone who’s had skin problems knows what an utter trial this would be. Extreme & persistent discomfort is what God’s aiming for here. The Haggadah is a special prayer book used during Passover & the Golden Haddagh was made in Spain for a rich family in Barcelona. 

7: Hail, David Sokoloff (2014?)

Children’s or illustrated bibles are always good for paintings of the big hitting storylines: Joseph & his coat, David batters Goliath, Jesus takes a huff with the merchants in the temple & chucks the furniture about & so on. The trouble is they’re often a bit samey in atmosphere & style, as if you’re only allowed to paint Jesus for children in soft focus. This however, has a fun, almost New Yorker cartoon vibe & quite honestly gets the point across: don’t annoy God.

8: A Swarm of Locusts, Emil Schmidt (before 1910)

I wasn’t able to find out whether this related directly to the Ten Plagues but it looks to me as if God is literally throwing the locusts at the Egyptians.

9: The Ninth Plague: Darkness, Gustave Doré (1866)

The master. Doré’s Darkness may be situated on a questionable continent, but it conveys the despair &  misery that perpetual lack of light can bring. We see various states of depression, discomfort & apathy brought about by the fantastically portrayed louring sky. Here we see God practically inventing mental illness.

10: Lamentations Over the Death of the First-Born of Egypt, Charles Sprague Pearce (1877)

By now, God knows the true nature of humanity. He understands the devastation caused by the loss of a child. He has lost patience with the irresponsible Egyptians. This is the ultimate punishment & he asserts it. Finally the pharaoh relents & sets the people free. In this image, the desolation of the aftermath is all too real. The sacrifice has been too much.

We all know only too well the toll the death of a child can take on a family. Sadly, this week there are several families experiencing this. If only in these times, we had the courage to stand up to those who would sacrifice the children of others for a flimsy, out-dated & frankly pitiful set of “rights.”