William Godwin, novelist and historian
Drawing
1834 (made)
1834 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
This drawing by Daniel Maclise portrays the writer William Godwin (1756-1836) in later life. A printed version of the image was published in Fraser's Magazine in 1834, accompanying a brief article about Godwin, the author of Political Justice (1793), Caleb Williams (1794), Thoughts on Man (1831) and many other literary and philosophical works. Godwin's wife Mary Wollstonecraft was the author of A Vindication of the Rights of Woman (1792). Their daughter Mary wrote Frankenstein (1818) and married the poet Percy Bysshe Shelley.
Maclise produced many portraits for Fraser's Magazine in the 1830s, using the pseudonym Alfred Croquis. The monogram AC appears towards the bottom left of the Godwin drawing, in reverse.
The V&A's National Art Library holds the original manuscripts of many of Godwin's best-known texts, including Political Justice and Caleb Williams. The manuscripts - and the drawing by Maclise - were bequeathed to the Museum by John Forster (1812-1876), who admired Godwin's work and visited him in 1832.
Maclise produced many portraits for Fraser's Magazine in the 1830s, using the pseudonym Alfred Croquis. The monogram AC appears towards the bottom left of the Godwin drawing, in reverse.
The V&A's National Art Library holds the original manuscripts of many of Godwin's best-known texts, including Political Justice and Caleb Williams. The manuscripts - and the drawing by Maclise - were bequeathed to the Museum by John Forster (1812-1876), who admired Godwin's work and visited him in 1832.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Title | William Godwin, novelist and historian (assigned by artist) |
| Materials and techniques | Pencil drawing |
| Brief description | Alfred Croquis (Daniel Maclise, R.A.), portrait of William Godwin, novelist and historian. Pencil on paper, ca.1834. |
| Physical description | Pencil drawing of William Godwin, novelist and historian |
| Dimensions | Dimensions taken from Forster Bequest register |
| Credit line | Forster Bequest |
| Object history | Between 1830 and 1838 Maclise contributed portraits of 'illustrious literary figures' to Fraser's Magazine, which were published under the pseudonym of Alfred Croquis. The V&A owns a set of 24 of the original drawings (F.87:1-24). |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Summary | This drawing by Daniel Maclise portrays the writer William Godwin (1756-1836) in later life. A printed version of the image was published in Fraser's Magazine in 1834, accompanying a brief article about Godwin, the author of Political Justice (1793), Caleb Williams (1794), Thoughts on Man (1831) and many other literary and philosophical works. Godwin's wife Mary Wollstonecraft was the author of A Vindication of the Rights of Woman (1792). Their daughter Mary wrote Frankenstein (1818) and married the poet Percy Bysshe Shelley. Maclise produced many portraits for Fraser's Magazine in the 1830s, using the pseudonym Alfred Croquis. The monogram AC appears towards the bottom left of the Godwin drawing, in reverse. The V&A's National Art Library holds the original manuscripts of many of Godwin's best-known texts, including Political Justice and Caleb Williams. The manuscripts - and the drawing by Maclise - were bequeathed to the Museum by John Forster (1812-1876), who admired Godwin's work and visited him in 1832. |
| Bibliographic reference | A printed version of the image appears between pp.462-463 of Fraser's Magazine, Vol. 10, 1834. (London: James Fraser, 1834) and is entitled William Godwin: Author of "Thoughts on Man". The image is followed by a one-page article on p.463, entitled Gallery of Literary Characters. No. LIII. William Godwin, Esq. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | F.87:13 |
About this object record
Explore the Collections contains over a million catalogue records, and over half a million images. It is a working database that includes information compiled over the life of the museum. Some of our records may contain offensive and discriminatory language, or reflect outdated ideas, practice and analysis. We are committed to addressing these issues, and to review and update our records accordingly.
You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.
Suggest feedback
You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.
Suggest feedback
| Record created | June 8, 2009 |
| Record URL |
Download as: JSONIIIF Manifest
