The New Metamorphosis: Frontispiece, Vol.1
Medium
Etching and engraving; second state of two
Dimensions
sheet: 5 9/16 x 3 1/16 in. (14.1 x 7.7 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1932
Accession Number
32.35(171)
Tags
Art Historical Context
This frontispiece from 1724 introduces *The New Metamorphosis*, an English adaptation of Apuleius’s ancient Roman novel *The Golden Ass*. Created as an etching and engraving in the second of two, the print measures just over five inches tall, making it ideally suited for a book illustration. The imagery of animals, satyrs, and human figures evokes the story’s themes of transformation and mythological adventure, inviting readers into a world where humans and beasts exchange forms. William Hogarth, then an emerging artist, contributed the engraving alongside writer Charles Gildon’s text. Early ...
About the Artist
Charles Gildon|William Hogarth|Lucius Madaurensis Apuleius (British|British|Algerian) · 1697 |1660 |0120 –1764 |1724 |0224
British, London 1697–1764 London|British, ca. 1665–1724|M'Daourouch, Algeria ca. 124–after 170