The Ghost of Samuel Appearing to Saul

William Blake

National Gallery of Art

This is a painting featuring a group of people. The central person is a man wearing a long robe with long hair and a beard that goes down to his thighs. His skin, hair, and clothes are almost completely white, and his index fingers on both hands are pointing downwards. Surrounding this person on either side are two other people in dramatic poses. On the left, a kneeling person dressed in red reaches upwards with open hands. To the right, another huddled person wearing blue has one arm over their face and their other arm extending backwards; their long orange hair stands on end around their head, and their face is in an expression of shock and fear. Behind the person on the left side are two other faces that appear indistinct and are without visible bodies. These two faces look towards the central person, and their mouths are open. The people stand or kneel on a gray surface, and the background is a blend of black, gray, and dark blue,