WILLIAM BLAKE (LONDON 1757-1827)
03.12.2025 00:00UTC +00:00
Classic
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CHRISTIE'S| Auctioneer | CHRISTIE'S |
|---|---|
| Event location | United Kingdom, London |
| Buyer Premium | see on Website% |
ID 1513592
Lot 155 | WILLIAM BLAKE (LONDON 1757-1827)
Estimate value
30000GBP £ 30 000 – 50 000
The Human Abstract, from: Songs of Experience
relief etching
the design printed in colours, the text printed in pale green, finished by hand with watercolour
circa 1793
on wove paper, without watermark
from the exceptionally rare First Issue, circa 1794, Copy G, Plate 47
printed by William Blake, hand coloured by William or Catherine Blake
with wide margins, with four stab holes at the left edge
Plate 110 x 65 mm.
Sheet 181 x 119 mm.
Provenance
With Quaritch, London, 1859-60 (bound, forty plates); and 1877 (rebound, fifteen plates); subsequently disbound and dispersed loose.
Possibly Julian Marshall (1836-1933), London; his sale, Sotheby's, London, 11 July 1904, lot 36 (eight plates) (£13; to Quaritch, London).
Possibly with George D. Smith Book Company Inc.; their liquidation sale, Anderson Galleries, New York, 21 May 1928, lot 179A.
Sir Geoffrey Keynes (1887-1982), Cambridge; possibly acquired from the above; then by descent.
Literature
SELECTED LITERATURE:
G. Keynes, and E. Wolf 2nd, William Blake’s Illuminated Books, A Census, New York, 1953, p. 58 (this impression cited).
G. Keynes, Bibliotheca Bibliographici: A Catalogue of the Library Formed by Geoffrey Keynes, London, 1964, no. 514 (this impression cited).
G. E. Bentley, Jr., Blake Books, Oxford, 1977, p. 415 (this impression cited).
D. Bindman, The Complete Graphic Works of William Blake, London, 1978, no. 251 (another impression illustrated).
R. Essick, and J. Viscomi, eds. The William Blake Archive. www.williamblakearchive.org. Accessed October 2025.
Exhibited
The British Museum, London, William Blake and his Circle, Bicentenary Exhibition, 1957. no. 35.6.
Tate Gallery, London, William Blake, March-May 1978, no. 56 (this impression illustrated).
| Artist: | William Blake (1757 - 1827) |
|---|---|
| Applied technique: | Hand colored, Etching |
| Medium: | Acrylic glass, Plastic |
| Art style: | Old Masters |
| Place of origin: | Northern Europe, Europe, United Kingdom |
| Auction house category: | Paintings, Watercolors, Drawings, Prints & Multiples |
| Artist: | William Blake (1757 - 1827) |
|---|---|
| Applied technique: | Hand colored, Etching |
| Medium: | Acrylic glass, Plastic |
| Art style: | Old Masters |
| Place of origin: | Northern Europe, Europe, United Kingdom |
| Auction house category: | Paintings, Watercolors, Drawings, Prints & Multiples |
| Address of auction |
CHRISTIE'S 8 King Street, St. James's SW1Y 6QT London United Kingdom | |
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| Phone | +44 (0)20 7839 9060 | |
| Buyer Premium | see on Website | |
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