Discover historical illustrations by subject, artist and book.
Creation and rebellion in Blake’s illuminated plates.
Norwegian fairy tales illustrated by Kay Nielsen.
Four colour drawings from a 1908 Gnostic text.
From the dark wood to Paradise with Gustave Doré.
Ethelwynne Quail’s visions of the spirit world.
Art Deco studies of fear by John Vassos.
13 illustrations
Olaf and his father are received by the Great High Priest, ruler of the inner continent, in a hall described as gold and jewels.
Unmadini uses a life-restoring thread and incantation after her husband Devasharma and his friend Gunakar are killed on their journey.
The standing body leans back against the rock, one hand braced beside it and the other lifted behind the head.
The winged observer stands at the right beneath spreading branches, looking towards the garden below.
The two bodies rest within a landscape of water and foliage, making the garden a lived place rather than an empty emblem.
The visitor appears as a bright figure beyond the shaded foreground, while the human pair turn towards the approaching shape.
The human figures remain close to the great roots, while the angel waits farther along the dark route through the trees.
Four long swords with differing handles are arranged beside a broad chipped stone blade.
A wooded rock formation rises above a stream beneath a low evening light.
A small dark winged figure appears among rushing water and high rock walls.
The Earth sits at the centre of twelve radial compartments, with zodiac signs around the outer circle.
A nude seated figure twists before two pale pyramids beneath a blue sky.
A helmeted winged figure pauses beside an enormous tree amid a dense forest of vines and undergrowth.