Belshazzar’s Feast
1820
John Martin loved to paint the end of the world, and this massive banquet scene is no exception. Look at those tiny, terrified figures scrambling around the table as a supernatural light blasts through the hall—Martin was famous for making humans look like ants against the power of nature and God. The stormy sky and looming ziggurat in the background set the stage for the biblical story of Belshazzar, who ignored a mysterious warning written on the wall just before his empire fell. It's pure Romantic drama, designed to make you feel small and awestruck! Fun fact: Martin was actually self-taught and started out painting coats of arms on glass before becoming the 'painter of the apocalypse'.
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