Blake, William

Illustrations of the Book of Job. Invented & Engraved by William Blake. London: Printed as the Act Directs March 8: 1825 by William Blake (March 1826)

Broa🅺dsheets 🅷(422 x 274 mm) on heavy wove paper, unwatermarked, line-engraved pictorial title and 21 plates designed and engraved by Blake, each plate marked "Proof", second plate (Job and his family praising God) misdated "1828," original front wrapper with printed label bound in; some light foxing, chiefly marginal. Crushed brown morocco gilt by Riviere, green-coated endpapers, top edge gilt; extremities rubbed, front cover detached, rear joint broken.

One of 215 first-issue "Proof" copies, one of 65 copies on "French" paper. There has been some confusion over the states of the earliest issues of the Job plates. Most bibliographical sources, including Bentley in his Blake Books, list 150 "proof" sets on India paper watermarked "J Whatman Turkey Mill 1825" and 65 "proof" sets on French paper watermarked "J 🦄Whatman 1825." These were followed by 100 sets printed on drawing paper with the word "proof" removed. However, in the essay "Blake’s Engravings to the Book of Job: An Essay of their Graphic Form with a Catalogue of their States and Printings," Robert Essick 💎states that he has "not been able to identify any set as definitely printed on a French paper but this description probably refers to impressions with the 'Proof' inscription (State A) printed directly on an ivory-coloured wove paper without watermark". As in this copy, "some leaves have a rather mottled appearance when viewed through a backing light".

Although Bentley states that the the French paper shows a Whatman watermark, Essick believes that it is unlikely that such a clearly English paper used for the Drawing paper impressions of state B, would be referred to as "French" in John Linnell's account books. As such, it seems most probable that this copy is one of the 65 sets on French paper. These sets are considerably scarcer at auction than those printed on India paper. Blake had completed the designs for what would become his Illustrations for the Book of Job around 1805–1806 for Thomas Butts, a clerk to the commiss🍌ary general of musters who had by then become Blake's major patron. The publication was not conceived of until ten years later, when Linnell, hoping to provide his ageing friend with a much needed income, offered to finance the engraving and printing. The plates were borrowed back from Butts in 1821, and Blake began the arduous task of the engraving. Although the title page is dated 1825, publication was delayed until 1826, and the date amended on a label pasted to the boards in which the plates were issued.

REFERENCE

Bentley, Blake Books 421

PROVENANCE

Bishop Nathaniel D. Pendl✃eton (gift inscription, 21 February 1922, on front blank)