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Bleak House Illustrations

Illustrations by Hablot Browne

Hablot Browne (Phiz) provided all 40 illustrations, etched on steel, for Bleak House published in monthly parts Mar 1852 - Sep 1853.

In order to help set the dark mood of the novel Browne incorporated a technique called 'dark plate' on ten of the illustrations. The dark plate technique involved using a ruling-machine (operated by an assistant) which cut a close-spaced criss-cross pattern of lines into the plate, thus creating an overall dark cast on the resulting print.

The illustration depicting Toms-all-Alone's, the slum that is home to the crossing-sweeper, Jo, is perhaps the most striking example of the dark plate technique.

Bleak House and Little Dorrit: Iconography of Darkness - From Dickens and Phiz by Michael Steig. (Steig, 1978, p. 131-172)

Click on an image to obtain a larger version of the illustration.

Bleak-House 01
The little old Lady

Bleak-House 02
Miss Jellyby

Bleak-House 03
The Lord Chancellor copies from memory

Bleak-House 04
Coavinses

Bleak-House 05
The visit to the Brickmaker's

Bleak-House 06
In Re Guppy. Extraordinary proceedings

Bleak-House 07
Mr. Guppy's desolation

Bleak-House 08
The family portraits at Mr Bayham Badger's

Bleak-House 09
The Dancing School

Bleak-House 10
Consecrated ground

Bleak-House 11
Caddy's flowers

Bleak-House 12
The little church in the park

Bleak-House 13
Mr Guppy's entertainment

Bleak-House 14
The Smallweed family

Bleak-House 15
A model of parental deportment

Bleak-House 16
Mr Chadband 'improving' a tough subject

Bleak-House 17
Visitors at the Shooting Gallery

Bleak-House 18
The Young Man of the name of Guppy

Bleak-House 19
Nurse and Patient

Bleak-House 20
The appointed time

Bleak-House 21
The old man of the name of Tulkinghorn

Bleak-House 22
Mr Smallweed breaks the pipe of peace

Bleak-House 23
Lady Dedlock in the Wood

Bleak-House 24
The Ghost's Walk

Bleak-House 25
Attorney and Client, fortitude and impatience

Bleak-House 26
Sunset in the long Drawing-room at Chesney Wold

Bleak-House 27
Sir Leicester Dedlock

Bleak-House 28
Tom-all-Alone's

Bleak-House 29
A new meaning in the Roman

Bleak-House 30
Friendly behaviour of Mr Bucket

Bleak-House 31
Light

Bleak-House 32
Shadow

Bleak-House 33
Mrs Bagnet returns from her expedition

Bleak-House 34
The lonely figure

Bleak-House 35
The Night

Bleak-House 21
The Morning

Bleak-House 22
Magnanimous conduct of Mr Guppy

Bleak-House 23
The Mausoleum at Chesney Wold

Bleak-House frontispiece
Frontispiece

Bleak-House title page
Title Page

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