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William Shakespeare

1827
Not on view
Created to illustrate Wivell's "Inquiry into the History of the Shakespeare Portraits" (1827), this engraved portrait derives from an early eighteenth-century mezzotint by John Simon, itself based on a painting by Gerard Van Soest (Shakespeare Birthplace Trust, Stratford-upon-Avon). Trained in Holland, Soest worked in London five decades after the Bard's death and constructed a likeness calculated to please tastes shaped by Sir Antony Van Dyck and John Dryden. Compared to life-time portrayals such as the Chandos Portrait (see 1986.1180.1631), this image has a thinner face, more sensitive expression, fuller head of hair, and has lost his rakish earring.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: William Shakespeare
  • Series/Portfolio: Wivell's Inquiry into the History of the Shakespeare Portraits
  • Engraver: William Holl, the Elder (British, 1771–1838)
  • Artist: After John Simon (French, Normandy ca. 1675–1751 London)
  • Artist: After Gerard van Soest (Dutch, Soest ca. 1605–1681 London)
  • Publisher: Abraham Wivell I (British, London 1786–1849 Birmingham)
  • Sitter: William Shakespeare (British, Stratford-upon-Avon 1564–1616 Stratford-upon-Avon)
  • Date: 1827
  • Medium: Stipple engraving
  • Dimensions: Chine collé: 8 1/8 × 6 5/16 in. (20.7 × 16 cm)
    Sheet: 16 15/16 × 12 7/8 in. (43 × 32.7 cm)
  • Classification: Prints
  • Credit Line: Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1917
  • Object Number: 17.3.756-2419
  • Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints

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