ABSTRACT
Sir Walter Scott’s historical novels present a dynamic clash of cultures and religions. In Ivanhoe (1819), Saxon and Norman, Jew and Christian must be reconciled so that England can become a unified nation. Scott’s narrative is temporally fluid and complex, with simultaneous scenes identified by “three blasts of the bugle.” Eugène Delacroix created art works inspired by Ivanhoe throughout his career. Insisting that he was “painting thoughts” (Journal, 8 October 1822), aware that Scott’s novel was subjectively driven, he rose to the challenge of representing the unseen or invisible. Delacroix depicted—twice!—Rebecca’s description of the attack on Torquilstone castle to the wounded Ivanhoe, who is unable to see it. This passage contrasts the characters of the gentle Jewess and the fiery Christian knight. The chapter centers on Delacroix’s painting of this episode (1823, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York), three lithographs (created 1829–1830), and the list of 24 possible subjects he noted in his Journal on 31 December 1860, several of them never addressed by any other European artist.
