The Children's Book of Celebrated PicturesBryant, Lorinda Munson
General
The Children's Book of Celebrated Pictures
Bryant, Lorinda Munson
Art -- Juvenile literature; Painting -- Juvenile literature
Of all the stories of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table
none is so strange as that of Sir Galahad. Its beginning is in the
upper chamber at the Last Supper with Jesus and his disciples. Legend
says that the cup used by our Savior at the Last Supper was the Holy
Grail. Joseph of Arimathea, who bought the cup from Pontius Pilate,
used it to catch the blood that flowed from the pierced side of our
Lord. The cup, or Holy Grail, was kept in the Convent of the Holy
Grail by the descendants of Joseph of Arimathea.
The cup had marvelous powers in the hands of a perfect knight.
Centuries passed and no perfect knight came to claim the Holy Grail.
Then King Arthur founded the Knights of the Round Table. One seat at
the round table was always vacant waiting for the sinless youth. Many
tried to sit in the "seat perilous," as it was called, but the seat
let each one down to disappear forever.
At last an old man--Joseph of Arimathea himself--brought a boy and
seated him in the vacant chair. The knights were frightened but the
boy sat unharmed and above the seat appeared the words:
THIS IS THE SEAT OF GALAHAD
King Arthur knighted him and sent him forth to find the Holy Grail.
Years went by and awful trials and temptations came to Sir Galahad. He
did not yield to the bad things that came, but kept looking for the
Holy Grail. At last he held the cross before his face to keep off his
tormentors when before his eyes he saw the cup, and the power of the
Holy Grail came to him.
This picture of Sir Galahad in Eton College, England, hangs in the
chapel opposite the entrance door where each boy passes in on his way
to morning and evening prayers.
[Illustration: FIG. 41. SIR GALAHAD. WATTS. ETON COLLEGE, ENGLAND]
THE DUCHESS OF DEVONSHIRE AND
HER CHILD
SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS (1723-1792)
Sir Joshua Reynolds ought to be called "the painter of little girls."
No artist ever painted a larger number of little girls. And no artist
ever knew better than he how to get the confidence of children, boys
or girls.
One time a little boy in London was to carry a flag in a procession.
What do you think he did? He went to Sir Joshua Reynolds, the artist
whom no one dared to interrupt, and asked him if he would paint a flag
for him. This pleased the great man. When the boy proudly displayed
his flag, every one asked:
"Where did you get such a wonderful flag?"
You can guess how proud the boy was to say, "Sir Joshua Reynolds
painted it for me!"
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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