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The Lonely Tower

Print
1879 (etched), 1880 (published)
Artist/Maker
Palmer, Samuel (etcher)
Ansdell, R. (publisher)
Place of origin
England (etched)
England (published)

Etching of a night scene: two shepherds guarding sheep gaze at a tower standing high on a distant hill, which has a solitary lit window. Starlight and radiance from a crescent moon low on the horizon illuminate the landscape and its human and animal occupants.

Object details

Category
Prints
Object type
Print
TitleThe Lonely Tower (assigned by artist)
Materials and techniques
Etching print on paper
Printing Ink
Paper
Etching
Brief description
'The Lonely Tower'. Two shepherds guarding sheep gaze at a tower standing high on a distant hill. Etching by Samuel Palmer, 1879. Published in 'Il Penseroso', England, 1880.
Physical description
Etching of a night scene: two shepherds guarding sheep gaze at a tower standing high on a distant hill, which has a solitary lit window. Starlight and radiance from a crescent moon low on the horizon illuminate the landscape and its human and animal occupants.
Dimensions
  • Height: 19.1cm
  • Width: 25.4cm
Taken from the dimensions given in the Victoria and Albert Museum Catalogue of the Prints, Drawings, Paintings & Photographs Collections and converted from inches to centimetres.
Style
Romantic
Marks and inscriptions
  • 'Samuel Palmer'

    Note
    Signed in pencil.

  • '16'

    Note
    Numbered in the lower-left-hand margin.

Object history
This is one of the plates in John Milton's 'Il Penseroso', published for the Etching Club by R. Ansdell, 1880.
Production
This is one of the plates in 'Il Penseroso' published for the Etching Club by R. Ansdell, 1880.
Subjects depicted
Moon
Towers
Night Scenes
Shepherds
Sheep
Associated objects
Bibliographic references
  • Catalogue of an exhibition of drawings, etchings & woodcuts by Samuel Palmer and other disciples of William Blake. London, Pub. under the authority of the Board of Education, 1926 no. 220
  • Catalogue of an Exhibition of Drawings, Etchings & Woodcuts by Samuel Palmer and other Disciples of William Blake October 20 - December 31, 1926. London : Published under the authority of the Board of Education, 1926. Publication No. 178 E.I.D. pp.83-84.
Collection
Prints, Drawings & Paintings Collection
Accession number
29325:16

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Record createdJune 30, 2009
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O975297/the-lonely-tower-print-palmer-samuel/
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