Sonnets and Other Small Poems

1797

De Beer Eb 1797 P

Printed for G. Sael

The bookplate of Newcastle businessman, Middleton Hewitson (1771-1845) was executed by engraver and author, Thomas Bewick (1753-1828). Now known as the ‘Father of Modern Wood Engraving’ for reviving the technique of engraving on boxwood against the grain, Bewick’s artistic talents have been compared to Holbein (d. 1543) and J. M. W. Turner (d. 1851). He was a ‘white-line engraver’, which meant that each cut became white space upon printing of the woodblock. The idyllic riverside vista, with the mill house across the water, most probably represents a Tyne River scene of the time. After Hewitson’s death, the book came into the possession of author and bookseller, John Ramsden Tutin (1855-1913), and he pasted in his book label.