The artwork titled “The Army Appears in the Heavens” is a religious painting by Gustave Doré, associated with the Romanticism art movement. It is part of the series “The Holy Bible.”
The artwork depicts a celestial phenomenon as described in the biblical text of 2 Maccabees 5:2. An ethereal army is portrayed in the heavens, appearing above a scene filled with figures who gaze upwards in awe. The sky is dramatically rendered with swirling clouds and a multitude of gleaming, ghostly horsemen, garbed in golden cloaks and armed with lances. The terrestrial figures are positioned beneath this heavenly vision, with varied expressions and gestures reflecting their astonishment and reverence. Doré’s intricate detailing emphasizes the otherworldly nature of the apparition, blending the divine with the terrestrial in a composition that powerfully evokes the themes of awe and divine intervention.
