The Bible. Old Testament (Set of 2 books)

BML B Volume 1

In the first book, texts from the Old Testament are presented from the Five Books of Moses to the Book of Esther in the classical Synodal translation.

In the second book of the Old Testament, texts from the Book of Job to the Book of Ezra are presented in the Synodal translation.

The books are adorned with works by the talented French painter and graphic artist Gustave Doré (1832–1883). In 1866, the Bible with Doré's engravings was first demonstrated to an enthusiastic public. The detailed, expressive illustrations achieved grand success and immortalized the artist through the ages. This edition includes both engravings and paintings by Doré that capture the events of the Holy Scriptures.

Doré's works have excited the public since the first illustrated Bible was published. Years later, his cycle of illustrations for biblical stories still astonishes with the scale of the work accomplished, the richness of details, and the expressiveness of the images.

This edition represents the first and second volumes of the Old Testament. It includes texts from the Holy Scriptures from the first book of Moses to the Book of Esther, and from the Book of Job to the Book of Ezra. Readers can familiarize themselves with ancient events in the classical Synodal translation. Work on it began as early as 1816 and continued for many years. The process was fraught with many difficulties, it was interrupted and resumed, but ultimately, in 1876, a fully translated Bible in Russian was published. This translation was approved by the Holy Synod — the highest church governing body until the early 20th century. After many years, it remains the most sought-after Russian-language translation of the Holy Scriptures. The texts of the Bible were illustrated by the outstanding French artist of the 19th century, Gustave Doré.

Louis-Auguste Gustave Doré (1832–1883), a magnificent graphic artist, painter, and sculptor, gained wide recognition during his lifetime. From a young age, he demonstrated extraordinary drawing abilities: the artist was only ten when he first attempted to create illustrations for Dante Alighieri's "Divine Comedy." Doré's father, despite his son's evident talent, was against his passion for art, believing that it would not bring the boy a decent income in the future. Doré graduated from the Charlemagne lyceum in Paris but never received formal artistic education. However, the young draftsman tried to improve his skills independently by analyzing the works of other masters. By the age of fifteen, Doré managed to publish his first series of lithographs — "The Labors of Hercules." He began collaborating with magazines and illustrating books by famous authors — Charles Perrault, Miguel de Cervantes, Rudolf Raspe, and many others. Engravings based on his drawings garnered admiration from viewers all over Europe, and in England, Doré was considered not only a master of book illustration but also a gifted painter. Young Gustave, contrary to his parents' fears, earned significant amounts of money and became one of the highest-paid illustrators in France, thanks to which he was able to support his entire family when his father passed away. In 1866, the Bible with Doré's engravings was published for the first time. The talented artist worked diligently on it for two years, wishing to depict the events of the Old and New Testaments in the best possible way. The result of his painstaking work was monumental illustrations that amazed the public with their abundance of details, plasticity of figures, poetic imagery, and stunning interplay of light and shadow. This edition includes not only engravings but also paintings by Gustave Doré on biblical themes that brought him worldwide fame.