The Ancient of Days
by William Blake, 1794
StyleRomanticism
MediumWatercolor
Artwork Details
Details
- Year
- 1794
- Medium
- Etching with watercolor
- Size
- 23.3 cm × 16.8 cm
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William Blake created this image in 1794 as the frontispiece to his illuminated book Europe a Prophecy. A powerful figure crouches within a flaming orb, extending a golden compass into the void below. His white hair streams in an unseen wind as he measures out creation.
The figure is Urizen, Blake's personification of reason and law, drawing on biblical imagery of God as creator and architect. But Blake's mythology was complex and subversive. For him, Urizen represented the tyranny of rationalism and institutional religion, not benevolent creation.
Blake called this design a "singular favourite" and made many versions throughout his life. He was coloring a final copy for patron Frederick Tatham just weeks before his death in 1827. Each impression is unique because Blake hand-tinted every print. The version at the British Museum is among the most reproduced images in Western art.
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About The Ancient of Days
The British Museum holds a famous copy. Only about 13 impressions exist worldwide, each hand-colored uniquely by Blake.
The figure is Urizen, Blake's personification of reason and law. He's depicted creating the material world with a compass, but in Blake's mythology this represents tyrannical rationalism rather than divine benevolence.
It's the frontispiece to Blake's "Europe a Prophecy" (1794), one of his illuminated books combining poetry and visual art. The work was influenced by the French Revolution.
It's part of Romanticism, though Blake's visionary art was highly personal. He used the relief etching technique he invented, then hand-colored each impression with watercolor.
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