Daniel Interprets the Dream and the Fiery Furnace, Pieter Mortier, circa 1700

This original copperplate engraving from Pieter Mortier's illustrated Bible, Amsterdam circa 1700, shows two biblical scenes on one sheet: Daniel 2:31, Daniel interprets Nebuchadnezzar's dream, and Daniel 3, the three young men preserved in the burning fiery furnace. The upper scene illustrates Daniel chapter 2, verse 31, where Daniel explains to King Nebuchadnezzar his dream of the great statue with a head of gold. The king sits enthroned beneath a canopy while Daniel stands before him and points to the vision of the statue that appears in a glow of light at the right, as a priest tends incense at an altar.

The lower scene shows Daniel chapter 3, the three young men Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego preserved unharmed in the burning fiery furnace. They stand calmly within the flames of a great domed furnace while the soldiers who threw them in are overcome by the heat, and the king's golden image rises on its column in the background. Each scene carries its own engraved caption with the scripture reference in Dutch and French, and the sheet is numbered 122 in the lower margin.

Mortier's illustrated Bible stands among the landmarks of Dutch Baroque book illustration. The Amsterdam publisher brought together a team of designers and engravers, with contributing artists including Gerard Hoet, Arnold Houbraken and Bernard Picart, to produce a continuous pictorial narrative of scripture, each copper plate carrying two scenes framed like paintings hung on a wall. This sheet is signed in the lower margin by Bernard Picart as designer, and no engraver's signature is visible. The sheet is printed on laid paper with full margins, and the reverse is blank.

For display, the tall double composition works well in a hallway or beside a bookcase, and a pair or group of Mortier sheets makes a coherent wall of Baroque religious art. Collectors of engravings illustrating the Book of Daniel will find it a well documented and attractive example.

The sheet is in good condition for its age, with light toning, a small brown spot in the lower right margin and a slightly frayed right edge; the image itself is clean and strong.

This is an original antique print, not a modern reproduction. This item is sold unframed.