John Martin | The Ascent of Elijah 1824
The Ascent of Elijah 1824 (Published state)
Mezzotint on paper
signed and dated 'J.Martin. 1824.in plate and lettered 'London, Drawn, Engd. & Pubd. by Mr. Martin, Allsop Buildings, New Road 1824'.
26.6 x 22.4 cm
Sheet size: 36 x 27.5 cm
In good condition, slight cockling on the lower left cnr.
$1850
The subject was first exhibited at the Royal Society of British Artists, in April 1824, and apparently intended as a companion to 'Christ Tempted in the Wilderness'. They are thought to be the first engravings by the artist on the then new material, soft steel. It is possible that 'The Ascent of Elijah' was engraved slightly before 'Christ Tempted in the Wilderness'. Both images were released as independent prints. They pre-date the Paradise Lost mezzotints and it is claimed that Martin’s entire, spectacular, mezzotint oeuvre stemmed from these two works.
'The Ascent of Elijah' was included in the first group of mezzotints ever to be exhibited, in public, by Martin. After Martin’s initial printing the two subjects were later twice republished by Septimus Prowett. All of these are now extremely rare.
The scene illustrated is taken from the second book of Kings:
"And it came to pass, as they went on, and talked, that, behold, There appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them Both asunder: and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven. And Elisha saw it, and he cried, My father, my father! The chariot of Israel, and the horseman thereof. And he saw him no more…He (Elisha), took up also the mantle of Elijah that fell from him…
Another copy is held in the V&A London:
Link: https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O692745/print-john-martin/
1789-1854
Martin was born near Hexham, Northumberland. He was apprenticed first to an heraldic coach painter in Newcastle, and then to a china painter with whom he came to London in 1806. He exhibited at the Royal Academy from 1811, and at the British Institution, where he won premiums in 1817 and 1821. He designed various urban improvements for London, and painted some landscapes of the Thames Valley. He became paralysed in 1853 and died in Douglas, Isle of Man.
Martin is best-known as a painter of religious subjects and fantastic compositions. His paintings, typically vast landscapes and cityscapes peopled with a myriad of tiny figures, enjoyed great success, as did the engravings made from them. Among his principal pictures are Belshazzar's Feast (Tate Gallery T04896), The Last Judgement (Tate Gallery T01927), The Plains of Heaven (Tate Gallery T01928) and The Great Day of His Wrath (Tate Gallery N05613). Several of these were engraved by Martin himself. The engravings of The Deluge (1837) and two others were presented by the French Academy to Louis Phillippe who ordered a special medal to be struck and sent to Martin as a token of esteem. After the Belgian government bought The Fall of Ninevah, the Belgian Academy made Martin a member and the King of Belgium created him a Knight of the Order of Leopold.