A little of the history of Egypt, from Books of the Dead in 1300 BCE, up to Napoleon’s campaign there between 1798-1801.
Blake
The stories of Samson, whose prodigious strength depended on not having his hair cut, and Mary Magdalene, who dried Christ’s feet with her hair.
The popular story of the Judgement of Solomon is a great challenge for visual art. Here are some of the better attempts at solution, from Raphael to Blake.
Trained at the Royal Academy Schools only ten years after they had opened, he has become one of the most important and original British visual artists.
Snakes and serpents in myth, legend and religion are thoroughly sinister and bad, with one curious exception. A journey across centuries of images.
Part 1, in which rebellion develops across England and Wales against the King, and Falstaff leads Prince Harry astray.
Suppressed by the Reformation, narrative painting didn’t really get going in Britain until the early 18th century, but made up for lost time.
This play, responsible for the burning down of the Globe Theatre, tells the story of Henry’s divorce from Queen Katherine and the birth of Queen Elizabeth I.
Based on Plutarch’s Lives, this play contains some of the most memorable quotations in English, and has been painted quite frequently.
A story of jealousy, adultery, treachery and race, which resulted in an early professional actress in a lead, and the first major lead for a black actor.
