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Title
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The Lamb (1927)
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Student Commentary:
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A child feeds a small lamb from the palm of his hand in the foreground of this image from Songs of Innocence (1927 facsimile). The two are framed by thick brownish vines that border the illustration on this plate. Behind them is a field filled with grazing sheep. To the right of the herd is a cottage with a thatched straw roof. Trees give the cottage shade from the sun. Vines surround the bulk of the text on this page, except for the title which appears above the vines in a larger font.
The coloring and impact of this image should be compared to that of other reproductions in the library’s collections, made by different hands or from different original copies. This image of The Lamb, for example, has a heavier feel than the 1954 facsimile. The contrast between the text in brown and the dark and deeply colored scene on the bottom makes the image feel like it is bottom heavy. This version of The Lamb also appears to have been done with more control, instead of letting the colors flow into one another. Like the 1926 facsimile, based on the same model by Blake, it also lacks the wash of color behind the cottage that can be seen in the 1954 reproduction, representing the sky or a mountain.
