Comments on: Victorian wood-engraved illustrations

Victorian wood-engraved illustrations

thomas j wise — Fri, 29 Jun 2007 16:51:57 -0800

The Database of Mid-Victorian Wood-engraved Illustration (Centre for Editorial and Intertextual Research, Cardiff University) hosts well over eight hundred images from Victorian texts; you can browse the site by iconographic themes and features (tools, religion, etc.) or conduct more specific searches by author, publisher, and the like. For more overviews of Victorian book illustration, visit Bob Speel's nineteenth-century art website, which features a number of pages devoted to various topics in book illustration, and the Victorian Web. Illuminated Books features a small collection of digitized illustrated works, many of them Victorian; there's a larger collection at Children's Books Online. The Victorian novelist we most closely associate with book illustration is Charles Dickens, and David Perdue has brief biographical sketches of his various illustrators, with examples of their work. Famous illustrators with their own websites include Sir John Tenniel, Arthur Rackham, and Randolph Caldecott. (Main link via VICTORIA.)

By: brundlefly

brundlefly — Fri, 29 Jun 2007 16:56:51 -0800

Nice. Thanks so much!

By: UbuRoivas

UbuRoivas — Fri, 29 Jun 2007 17:08:28 -0800

Wonderful as always, thomas j wise. Thanks!

By: eriko

eriko — Fri, 29 Jun 2007 17:34:24 -0800

We have a winner! Err, I mean. Sir: In regards to your posting of the 29th of June, I am compelled to remark upon its excellence. The Honorable Lord Admiral was also struck by the execution, declaring it all shipshape and bristol fashion. We are indeed indebted to you for this link. I remain, eriko, esq. Sysadmiralty House

By: LeeJay

LeeJay — Fri, 29 Jun 2007 17:34:51 -0800

I just favorited this post so hard my mouse broke. Awesome stuff!

By: Dataphage

Dataphage — Fri, 29 Jun 2007 17:57:43 -0800

How do you download the full images? The best I can do is get a bunch of tiles, like so: http://www.dmvi.cf.ac.uk/dbimages/TPS7/TileGroup0/0-0-0.jpg http://www.dmvi.cf.ac.uk/dbimages/TPS7/TileGroup0/2-1-0.jpg etc...

By: UbuRoivas

UbuRoivas — Fri, 29 Jun 2007 18:14:44 -0800

LeeJay: better order yourself a crate of mice.

By: LeeJay

LeeJay — Fri, 29 Jun 2007 18:21:23 -0800

Jackpot! Thanks for pointing out thomas j wise's excellent posting history. *settles in for a long night of exploring*

By: Kraftmatic Adjustable Cheese

Kraftmatic Adjustable Cheese — Fri, 29 Jun 2007 18:29:17 -0800

Thanks, the Illustrated Book link is wonderful. I had been looking for something exactly like it.

By: Kraftmatic Adjustable Cheese

Kraftmatic Adjustable Cheese — Fri, 29 Jun 2007 18:30:53 -0800

err... Illuminated Books, I mean.

By: stagewhisper

stagewhisper — Fri, 29 Jun 2007 19:15:47 -0800

Lovely! Thanks for these.

By: jouke

jouke — Fri, 29 Jun 2007 22:01:15 -0800

Nice. Although it's a pity that it seems to be impossible to get image files from this.

By: believe

believe — Fri, 29 Jun 2007 22:44:02 -0800

Thanks for all of this but it seems to be impossible to get image files from this.

By: verstegan

verstegan — Sat, 30 Jun 2007 13:48:19 -0800

The Database of M-V W-E Illustration is a splendid resource, but a very peculiar one. What is the point of digitizing, say, one of Millais' wonderful illustrations for Trollope's Orley Farm -- this one, for example: There was sorrow in her heart, and deep thought in her mind -- and solemnly indexing it under such headings as: built environments > features and fittings > window-shutters physical positions > postures > sitting furnishings > cupboards while providing, as far as I can see, no information whatsoever about the novel, the characters or the plot? All very odd, and I can't understand what the creators of this database thought they were doing, or who they were doing it for. But maybe there are graduate students writing dissertations on 'The Window-Shutter in Victorian Fiction' for whom this will be a magnificent resource.

By: Grod

Grod — Sat, 30 Jun 2007 16:31:08 -0800

Wonderful, but absolutely worthless if I can't download the Tiffs.