Tailpiece (page 268) from The Fables of Aesop
Thomas Bewick
British, 1753–1828
1818
A small wood engraving tailpiece by Thomas Bewick that punctuates the moral text with a lively miniature scene, aiming to add visual wit and narrative closure to a page of Aesop’s Fables.
At first glance you notice a tiny, theater‑like tableau—densely packed figures rendered in crisp black lines and delicate crosshatching that reward close looking with humorous, narrative detail.
Bewick’s economical, highly detailed wood engravings helped redefine book illustration in the early 19th century by bringing character, storytelling, and social observation into mass‑produced texts and influencing generations of illustrators.
Medium
Wood engraving from an illustrated book with 323 wood engravings and one etching and engraving
Dimensions
composition (irreg.): 1 3/16 × 2 3/8" (3 × 6.1 cm); page (irreg.): 8 1/4 × 5 5/16" (21 × 13.5 cm)
Classification
Department
Credit
The Louis E. Stern Collection
Accession
680.1964.234
Palette
Exhibitions
