No-one could black his boots except himself

Hugh Thomson

1891

Photomechanical reproduction of a pen and ink drawing

3½ x 3 inches.

Elizabeth Gaskell, Cranford, p.22.

Captain Brown polishing his boots. The illustration typifies Thomson’s visualization of Gaskell’s domestic drama; highlighting elements of genre, the artist imbues the everyday with value and significance, notably in the form of the boots and shoes that spill out of the design.

Scanned image and text by Simon Cooke.

[You may use this image without prior permission for any scholarly or educational purpose as long as you (1) credit the person who scanned the image and (2) link your document to this URL in a web document or cite the Victorian Web in a print one.]