The Judas Kiss
Gustave Doré, 1866 · Mark 14:45
The passage
And as soon as he was come, he goeth straightway to him, and saith, Master, master; and kissed him.
Mark 14:45
About this plate
Night, under trees, with a lantern burning at the top right. Christ stands at the centre in a pale robe, still, hands down. Judas has come in close on his left and is turned up toward his face. Behind and around them the arresting party presses forward — hooded heads, a crowd of faces going back into the dark, and staves showing above the shoulders.
Doré lights only one thing. The robe is the brightest object in the plate by a long way, and everything else is graded down into the trees. Judas's face is in shadow. So is every other face except the one he is turned toward.
Read the verse again for the word Mark repeats. Master, master. Twice. The King James keeps the doubling, and it is horrible — the greeting is too warm, and it is said twice, and it is the signal.
The plate holds the half second before contact. Nobody has seized anyone yet. The crowd is still just standing there, and the only two people doing anything are one man leaning in and one man not moving.
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