Decorative title piece, by Thomas Robert Macquoid

Decorative title-piece. Thomas Robert Macquoid. Wood engraving by the Dalziels. 3 x 3½ inches. Thomas Campbell,Gertrude of Wyoming, 1. Click on image to enlarge it.

A typically intricate interlace in which the randomness of nature is organized into a strict symmetry, with spreading branches presented as a sort of frame and ferns and leaves emanating from each side. Though derived from the rustic arbours of Alfred Rethel and German book illustration of the 1840s, Macquoid’s devices suggest organic, dynamic growth, invigorating the older style with a new directness and vitality.

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.]

Bibliography

Campbell, Thomas.Gertrude of Wyoming, or, the Pennsylvanian Cottage. New Ed. London: Routledge, Warne, and Routledge, 1862.


Created 27 April 2018