Headpiece (page 123) from The Fables of Aesop
Thomas Bewick
British, 1753–1828
1818
A small wood‑engraved headpiece by Thomas Bewick that condenses Aesop’s “The Lioness and the Fox” into a single, naturalistic vignette meant to animate the fable for readers.
At first glance the tiny oval scene arrests you with razor‑sharp lines and dense cross‑hatching — a watchful lioness and a sly fox stand in a quietly detailed landscape, all contained within a neat rectangular frame.
Bewick’s economical, observational wood engraving helped redefine illustrated books in the early nineteenth century by bringing scientific attention to natural detail and establishing a lasting model for narrative book illustration.
Medium
Wood engraving from an illustrated book with 323 wood engravings and one etching and engraving
Dimensions
composition: 2 5/16 × 3 3/16" (5.8 × 8.1 cm); page (irreg.): 8 1/4 × 5 5/16" (21 × 13.5 cm)
Classification
Department
Credit
The Louis E. Stern Collection
Accession
680.1964.113
Palette
Art Terms
Exhibitions
