Biblia Sacra

Dalí Illustrates The Bible | 105 Lithographs from The Creation to The Resurrection

The Biblia Sacra suite was published, starting in 1967 and finalized in 1969, by Rizzoli Editions, Milan, Italy, stands as one of the most monumental and technically sophisticated graphic undertakings of Salvador Dalí’s career. Commissioned by his friend and patron Giuseppe Albaretto, who hoped the project would bring the artist closer to his Catholic faith, the ambitious collection comprises 105 lithographs after original paintings. This series of original paintings was originally commissioned in 1963, capturing Dalí at a creative peak where he sought to harmonize the imaginative power of Surrealism with the profound mysteries of religious tradition. To translate Dalí’s vibrant, experimental paintings to the page, over the course of the next few years Rizzoli employed a complex, multi-layered lithographic process involving as many as 20 colors per plate, successfully capturing the unique textures of Dalí’s original combinations of gouache, watercolor, ink, and pastel.

The result is a visual odyssey through The Bible's Old and New Testaments that eschews traditional piety in favor of raw, emotive, and often haunting imagery. From the swirling, chaotic energy of The Creation to the stark, ethereal beauty of The Resurrection, Dalí’s interpretations are deeply personal, reflecting a mind that viewed the divine through a lens of psychological complexity and cosmic wonder. Each lithograph in this limited-edition release is printed on heavy, handmade paper, marking the Biblia Sacra not only as a significant theological statement but as a masterwork from one of the great artists of the 20th-century.