Thenot Remonstrates With Colinet, from Thornton's "Pastorals of Virgil"

Art Historical Context

In the pastoral idyll of Virgil's *Eclogues*, old shepherd Thenot gently remonstrates with the lovesick youth Colinet, a scene captured in this delicate wood engraving from Robert John Thornton's opulent 1821 edition *The Pastorals of Virgil*. Commissioned as part of a lavish British publication aimed at elevating classical poetry through contemporary art, the vignette embodies the Romantic fascination with rural simplicity and timeless human emotions. William Blake, the visionary poet and artist, contributed this intricate illustration amid a roster of talents, infusing the ancient Roman text with his ethereal touch—men, women, and sheep gathered in a serene Arcadian landscape evoke harmony between nature and moral counsel. Crafted as a second-state wood engraving on a tiny block (just under 2 by 3 inches), Blake's work showcases his mastery of white-line technique on end-grain boxwood, where fine lines are incised to create luminous, almost sculptural forms. This method, rare for its period, allowed for exceptional detail in small formats, making it ideal for book illustrations. Housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Drawings and Prints department (Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1931), it highlights Blake's versatility beyond his famous illuminated prints, bridging neoclassical revival and emerging Romanticism for 19th-century audiences.

About the Artist

Virgil|William Blake|Robert John Thornton (German) · 1514 –1562

German, (?) 1514–1562 Nuremberg