The blind man kneels at the edge and washes his eyes.
Bible in art · John
The Blind Man Washes in the Pool of Siloam (Le aveugle-né se lave à la piscine de Siloë)
James Tissot · 1886–1894
Brooklyn Museum, New York
The pool of Siloam lies at the foot of old stone walls and a dark arched tunnel, with steps running down at the left. Women come to fill their jars; one in blue carries a jar on her head.
By the water at the edge of the pool a man kneels in a blue robe and yellow cap and splashes his eyes. Tissot kept him small and almost ordinary among the women at their daily work.
From the text
- “He spit on the ground, made some mud, and applied it to the man’s eyes” (John 9:6)
- “Go, wash in the Pool of Siloam” … “So the man went and washed, and came back seeing” (John 9:7)
The artist’s own
- Women drawing water at the pool
- The dark arched tunnel above the water
Details
Washing
A water carrier
A woman in blue carries a jar on her head.
The tunnel
A dark arch opens over the pool.
The steps
Stone stairs run down beside the wall.
James Tissot, French, 1836–1902. Brooklyn Museum, New York (Purchased by public subscription, 00.159.173) · Opaque watercolor over graphite on gray wove paper · Brooklyn Museum (Commons file page, «Permission»): "This image was uploaded by the Brooklyn Museum as a content partnership, and is considered to have no known copyright restrictions by the institutions of the Brooklyn Museum." — "No known copyright restrictions".