There’s one particular painting of the Sacred Heart of Jesus that seems to crop up again and again. In fact, one online poster store has no less than four versions of it:
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[li]http://www.allposters.com/-sp/Sacred-Heart-of-Jesus-Posters_i430107_.htm[/li][li]http://www.allposters.com/-sp/Sacred-Heart-of-Jesus-Posters_i1788499_.htm[/li][li]http://www.allposters.com/-sp/Sacred-Heart-of-Jesus-Posters_i796420_.htm[/li][li]http://www.allposters.com/-sp/Sacred-Heart-of-Jesus-Posters_i796583_.htm[/li][/ul]
I’d like to know who the original artist is, and when it was originally produced. I’d also like to know if there’s some book that has a full-page reproduction (in colour)—if it’s in the public domain, as I suspect it is, then I’d like to get a high-resolution scan without having to pay £5 + shipping for a poster.
Anyone?
Okay, since one responded, I get to guess: an anonymous late 19th-century commercial artist. This is pretty standard iconography from that period, and when cheap color reproduction became available, this sort of image, along with analagous images of the Virgin and certain saints, started to appear in every Catholic home.
I think you’re quite safe in reproducing it, but I don’t know where you can get a good scannable version. Can’t you buy one off eBay?
You know, a little sweet-talking at any library serving a religious university (or the Faculty of Religion of a secular university) would likely yield a loan of a book with such an image. Take it from a lapsed Catholic, they’d be more than pleased to help you bring Jesus into your home. Many Catholic churches offer pocket cards with this image on one side, though a larger picture might take more hunting. Actually, your best chance could be stopping by on the Feast of the Sacred Heart. Great, now I’ll have hymns stuck in my head all afternoon.