The Resurrection of Lazarus (La résurrection de Lazare) 

James Tissot, a French painter, rendered *The Resurrection of Lazarus* as a watercolor, one of 350 biblical illustrations he produced towards the end of the 19th century. Tissot was not alone in trying to root biblical narratives in the real world. Advances in archaeology, philology, and historical research led many artists, intellectuals, and religious thinkers to imagine the ancient world in historically plausible terms. The effect was to bring the miraculous into the realm of everyday experience. This is clear in Tissot's staging of the scene: the somewhat dingy tomb, the way Lazarus strains to sit up, and the onlookers' startled expressions all suggest a contemporary happening. As an art historian, I can suggest that studying visual culture through the lens of its own time gives us a richer understanding of its place in social and intellectual history.