Giorgio Ghisi
Italian, 1520-1582

Vision of Ezekiel, 1554
Engraving

Previously lifeless and forsaken, the Valley of Dry Bones comes to life in Giorgio Ghisi’s large engraving. In this Old Testament vision, God commands Ezekiel to prophesize over a valley strewn with dry bones. Ghisi imagines an architectural landscape, where tombs split open and skeletal figures rise in various stages of reanimation. Some cling to edges of sarcophagi, others stand upright, their bodies partially restored with sinew and flesh. Above, angels descend through swirling clouds, signaling divine intervention. A remarkably cinematic image to modern viewers, 16^th century audiences were undoubtedly amazed by such an astonishing scene. Artists of all types have brought Biblical stories to dynamic life for millennia. One of the most important engravers of the Italian Renaissance, Ghisi dramatically renders this moment of resurrection with incredible detail and fantastical imagination.