Feeding the Sacred Ibis in the Halls of Karnac
Edward Poynter
Wood engraving by Joseph Swain.
6½ x 4¾ inches
Once a Week, n.s. 3 (Jan–Jun, 1867): facing p.238; printed on tinted paper.
This image illustrates a poem by Julia Goddard, ‘A Dream of Egypt’ (pp. 238–39), and captures the exotic tone of the ancient world. In part idealism and in part realism, it is poised between neo-classicism and the verisimilitude of Pre-Raphaelitism. Poynter re-worked the image as a painting in 1871 – more evidence of the overlap between book illustration and fine art.
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Scanned image and text by Simon Cooke.