In this illustration to the “Pan and Fortune” story in the Fables of John Gay, the half goat / half man Pan is pictured to the left. Pan is playing with dice and cards. To the right is a winged figure standing on a wheel holding a cornucopia, the personification of Fortune. Behind these two main figures are men with axes at work. Blake would have engraved this image, on commission, from a design by someone else. Not available at the William Blake Archive. Consult the book in Schaffer Library for a detailed view of the image.
The majority of this plate from The Marriage of Heaven and Hell (1960 facsimile) is comprised of green text on a white backdrop. In between lines, as well as in margins, there are some miniature illustrations. Blue landscape, whether it be sea or sky, fills much of what would otherwise be blank space. Bordering the words “Proverbs of Hell” are two scenes with human figures. To the left of the title, an old, hunched, male figure is clutching a walking stick. On the right of the title, several human figures are confronted by a snake that appears to be flying through the air. The humans have their arms raised in fright, while the snake bares its fangs in a vicious display. In another miniature scene, a nude male figure has his arms outstretched as if he is mid-movement. At the bottom of the plate, an angel wearing a long yellow robe is playing a trumpet while a large snake-like creature appears to swim alongside the angel.
In Blake’s image from the Thomas set of his work for Milton’s Paradise Lost (2004 facsimile), three figures sit around a table within the beautiful Garden of Eden. On the left side of the image, Adam and Eve sit together listening to the angel Raphael, on the right. Raphael gestures warningly to the Tree of Knowledge in the distance, which already has a snake coiled around it. Adam appears to be interacting and paying more attention to what Raphael is saying, while Eve is looking downward, her mind seemingly elsewhere. Her lack of attention may be an allusion to the sin she later commits.
A male figure with curly hair lies at the bottom of this plate from series B of There is No Natural Religion (1971 facsimile). His arms are rigid at his side, which indicates that he is either sleeping, dead, or in a trance. His head is lifted slightly compared to the rest of his body. Above his head, a faceless figure appears to stand with arms and one leg extended. Leaves and berries surround the number at the top of the plate. The text dominates the plate and makes a clear statement that “Reason or the ratio of all we have already known, is not the same that it shall be when we know more.”
This photograph of a replica of the type of printing press used by Blake was included with Michael Phillips’s 2016 facsimile of Songs of Innocence and of Experience. It is housed at Oxford University. Phillips used it to print his reproduction.
In Blake’s image from the Thomas set of his work for Milton’s Paradise Lost (2004 facsimile), Adam and Eve are depicted nude, kissing on a bed of flowers in the Garden of Eden. Above them a blue-colored Satan floats in the sky. He has an orange snake curled around his body. Adam and Eve’s pure love is at the center of the image; the snake wrapped around Satan is possibly a symbol of his self-love, malice, or ultimate transformation into a snake to trick Eve into eating the forbidden fruit. The progression of Satan flying into the light sky on the left from the dark on the right could represent him bringing the darkness to Adam and Eve.
There are three figures in Blake’s image from the Thomas set of his work for Milton’s Paradise Lost (2004 facsimile). Left to right are Satan, Sin, and Death. Sin is the only female character in the image and appears to be struggling to push Death and Satan, who are fighting, away from each other. Sin appears to be only part human; she is surrounded by snakes who obscure her figure from the waist down. Satan is a pale figure who is holding a spear and shield and lunging at Death, while Death appears to be largely transparent and lunges at Satan with a fiery weapon. While this fight is occurring, the room is being engulfed with fire. Blake takes the opportunity to play with dark and light in this image. Even though there is a fire and two of the figures are a bright white, the image still conveys darkness. Part of this effect could be from the subject matter; however, some part is due to the way Blake plays with the bright flames, the pale figure of Satan, and the shimmering aura around Sin, versus the desolate darkness of Death, whose identity is so uncertain. Death is given the ability to be “invisible,” while at the same time he can take on the appearance of anything.
This side portrait is featured in Lavater’s Essays on Physiognomy. Lavater objects to the design (presumably not by Blake, although he engraved it) in his accompanying text on the grounds that, compared to a frontal portrait, the shape of the nose is incorrect. Precise drawing was essential to Lavater’s study of human psychology through facial characteristics. Not available at the William Blake Archive. Consult the book in Schaffer Library for a detailed view of the image.
This selection of reproductions of representative pages from Blake’s Songs of Innocence and of Experience is included in Geoffrey Keynes’ Study of the Illuminated Books, published by the Trianon Press in 1964. Unlike the representation of pages from The Marriage of Heaven and Hell, this selection consists of pages with no text other than the titles written on two of the pages. These images are rich in color but dark at the same time. The dark color that is being evoked in the images may relate to Keynes’ observation that the Songs of Experience in particular are a “summing up for Blake all the bitterness and disappointment of adult reality.” The choices of these images was likely done strategically, to show Blake’s style as an artist, instead of presenting bits of his writings out of context.
Not available in this form at the William Blake Archive; consult the book in the library for more information.
The Application plate from series B of There is No Natural Religion (1971 facsimile) presents an amendment to series A. In the artwork on the plate, a curly haired man wearing a robe appears to be peering over a triangle, measuring the ground. A tree with no leaves frames the message on the plate, using its withered branches as borders: “He who sees the Infinite in all things sees God. He who sees the Ratio only sees himself only.”
In this image from The Marriage of Heaven and Hell (1960 facsimile), the text says "Rintrah roars," but the imagery is mysterious. A woman in a yellow gown stands at the base of a tree with one arm around the trunk. The other arm is extended to a woman robed in green who is in the tree among the branches. Behind them, the sky shifts in color from red to blue. A curling vine descends from the top of the tree and surrounds the words of the poetry. Towards the bottom of the plate, upon bright green grass, lay two nude human figures whose features are essentially indiscernible.
In this illustration at the start of Visions of the Daughters of Albion (1959 facsimile), a woman with her hair tied back kneels on the ground with her hands covering her breasts. She appears to kiss the forehead of a cherub or child. The child’s arms are outstretched in a joyful pose. The only landscape is a small patch of earth that the woman kneels upon and a miniature dark plant in the lower left corner. Behind the woman is a radiant pink sky. The beams extend to the other corners of the plate. The whole effect represents Oothoon’s happy state and prospects before they are destroyed by Bromion.
This engraving from Blake's Illustrations of Dante (1978 facsimile) is also a depiction of the eighth circle of Hell in the Divine Comedy. The two devils are flying over boiling seas and are attacking each other because they are unable to find anyone else upon which to bestow their wrath. In the background, to the right of the devils, is a group of other devils on flaming hills; they are watching the fight as if it were a show. Even further in the distance, on a path in the center, are Virgil and Dante, also watching. This image is a good example of the varying degree of detail in Blake’s work on the Divine Comedy. The devils in the center of the image are very detailed, but it is apparent that he didn’t spend much time on this image other than that. The other demons sitting on the hill are mere rushed sketches, and there is only an outline of Virgil and Dante walking the path.
This engraving from Illustrations of Dante (1978 facsimile) is Blake’s representation of a moment during Dante’s progress through the second circle of Hell, or Lust, in the Divine Comedy. His guide, Virgil, shows Dante the souls of those who have sinned through passion and who are forever trapped in a “Whirlwind of Lovers,” as this image is also called. Dante has fainted on the grass out of compassion. Blake took a dynamic approach to visualizing this circle of Hell. It is much more subdued and less gruesome than the late circles of Hell that he depicts.
This image appears near the beginning of Blake’s illustrations to “The Descent of Odin” in Thomas Gray’s Poems (1972 facsimile). It depicts the Norse god literally riding “down the yawning steep” on a horse, with drawn sword, shield out, and armor covering his body. This poem “from the Norse Tongue” was actually translated by Gray from Latin. It is part of a number of Norse legends dealing with the death of Odin’s son, Balder, and Odin’s effort to determine whether Balder’s death can be averted. Here Blake also shows Odin encountering the hideous “Dog of Darkness.” The adjacent page introducing the poem in Blake’s illustrations is startlingly light and whimsical compared to this dark image
In this image from Wollstonecraft’s Original Stories from Real Life, a man is standing in rigid fear and sorrow as he looks at two dead children. The children are a boy and a girl and lie in a bed in a room that only has one small window. On the right side of the image, there is a dog reaching up to lick the man’s hand. The accompanying text reads: “The Dog strove to attract his attention. He said, Thou will not leave me!”
In this illustration to “The Goat without a Beard” story in the Fables of John Gay, we see a barber shop run by monkeys. To the left is a monkey sharpening barber knives for shaving, and in the center is a monkey wearing a checkered apron about to put shaving cream on the goat, sitting in the chair, who is getting prepared for the shave. The monkey behind the goat is tying an apron on the goat to prepare him as well. Blake would have engraved this image, on commission, from a design by someone else. Not available at the William Blake Archive. Consult the book in Schaffer Library for a detailed view of the image.
A child feeds a small lamb from the palm of his hand in the foreground of this image from Songs of Innocence (1926 facsimile). The two are framed by thick green vines that border the illustration on this plate. Behind them is a field filled with grazing sheep. To the right of the herd is a cottage with a thatched straw roof. Trees give the cottage shade from the sun. Vines surround the bulk of the text on this page, except for the title which appears above the vines in a larger font.
The coloring and impact of this image should be compared to that of other reproductions in the library’s collections, made by different hands or from different original copies. This image of The Lamb, for example, has much brighter colors compared to the 1954 facsimile, drawing the eye to the illustration more strongly. It also lacks the wash of color behind the cottage that can be seen in the 1954 reproduction, representing the sky or a mountain.
A child feeds a small lamb from the palm of his hand in the foreground of this image from Songs of Innocence (1927 facsimile). The two are framed by thick brownish vines that border the illustration on this plate. Behind them is a field filled with grazing sheep. To the right of the herd is a cottage with a thatched straw roof. Trees give the cottage shade from the sun. Vines surround the bulk of the text on this page, except for the title which appears above the vines in a larger font.
The coloring and impact of this image should be compared to that of other reproductions in the library’s collections, made by different hands or from different original copies. This image of The Lamb, for example, has a heavier feel than the 1954 facsimile. The contrast between the text in brown and the dark and deeply colored scene on the bottom makes the image feel like it is bottom heavy. This version of The Lamb also appears to have been done with more control, instead of letting the colors flow into one another. Like the 1926 facsimile, based on the same model by Blake, it also lacks the wash of color behind the cottage that can be seen in the 1954 reproduction, representing the sky or a mountain.
A child feeds a small lamb from the palm of his hand in the foreground of this image from Songs of Innocence (1954 facsimile). The two are framed by thick green vines that border the illustration on this plate. Behind them is a field filled with grazing sheep. To the right of the herd is a cottage with a thatched straw roof. Trees give the cottage shade from the sun, which appears to be shining despite the deep purple sky (which could also be meant to be a mountain; this shape is not engraved on the plate). Vines surround the bulk of the text on this page, except for the title which appears above the vines in a larger font.
The coloring and impact of this image should be compared to that of other reproductions in the library’s collections, made by different hands or from different original copies.
A child feeds a small lamb from the palm of his hand in the foreground of this image from Songs of Innocence (1983 facsimile). The two are framed by thick vines that border the illustration on this plate. Behind them is a field filled with grazing sheep. To the right of the herd is a cottage with a thatched straw roof. Trees give the cottage shade from the sun. Vines surround the bulk of the text on this page, except for the title which appears above the vines in a larger font.
The coloring and impact of this image should be compared to that of other reproductions in the library’s collections, made by different hands or from different original copies. This image of The Lamb, for example, almost gives the impression of a rainbow. Each of the colors seamlessly blends together creating a colorful and thick border around the text. The text is printed in a brown ink that blends in with the trees and lambs.
A child feeds a small lamb from the palm of his hand in the foreground of this image from Songs of Innocence included in the combined edition with Songs of Experience (1983 facsimile). The two are framed by vines that border the illustration on this plate. Behind them is a field filled with grazing sheep. To the right of the herd is a cottage with a thatched straw roof. Vines surround the bulk of the text on this page, except for the title which appears above the vines in a larger font.
The coloring and impact of this image should be compared to that of other reproductions in the library’s collections, made by different hands or from different original copies. This uncolored proof in black ink from the Manchester Workshop, for example, allows us to appreciate details that are harder to see when the ink color is more muted or when watercolors are added later. This print also shows what the effect would be if the borders of the copper printing plate were also inked (or not wiped free of ink) before being pressed onto the paper. Not available at the William Blake Archive; consult the book in Schaffer Library for a detailed view of the image.
A child feeds a small lamb from the palm of his hand in the foreground of this image from Songs of Innocence (2016 facsimile). The two are framed by vines that border the illustration on this plate. Behind them is a field filled with grazing sheep. To the right of the herd is a cottage with a thatched straw roof. Vines surround the bulk of the text on this page, except for the title which appears above the vines in a larger font.
The coloring and impact of this image should be compared to that of other reproductions in the library’s collections, made by different hands or from different original copies. This uncolored print in black ink from Michael Phillips, for example, can be contrasted with a print using green ink instead. Blake used a variety of ink colors for his prints, which Phillips tested in a variety of ways. Not available at the William Blake Archive; consult the book in Schaffer Library for a detailed view of the image.
A child feeds a small lamb from the palm of his hand in the foreground of this image from Songs of Innocence (2016 facsimile). The two are framed by vines that border the illustration on this plate. Behind them is a field filled with grazing sheep. To the right of the herd is a cottage with a thatched straw roof. Vines surround the bulk of the text on this page, except for the title which appears above the vines in a larger font.
The coloring and impact of this image should be compared to that of other reproductions in the library’s collections, made by different hands or from different original copies. This uncolored print in green ink from Michael Phillips, for example, can be contrasted with a print using black ink instead. Blake used a variety of ink colors for his prints, which Phillips tested in a variety of ways. Not available at the William Blake Archive; consult the book in Schaffer Library for a detailed view of the image.