Shakespeare's Head Emblem

Publisher Jacob Tonson, the Elder British

Publisher Jacob Tonson, the Younger British

1735

Not on view

Jacob Tonson the Elder obtained publication rights to Shakespeare's works and issued an important edition of the plays in 1709. From about 1700, he worked in partnership with his nephew, Jacob Tonson the Younger, and they moved into a shop in the Strand known as Shakespeare's Head in 1710. This small woodcut image of the Bard, clipped from a Tonson title page, was their signature emblem.

Artwork Details

Overview

Signatures, Inscriptions, and Markings

Provenance

Title: Shakespeare's Head Emblem
Publisher: Jacob Tonson, the Elder (British, London 1655–1736 Barn Elms, Surrey)
Publisher: Jacob Tonson, the Younger (British, 1682–1735)
Sitter: William Shakespeare (British, Stratford-upon-Avon 1564–1616 Stratford-upon-Avon)
Date: 1735
Medium: Woodcut and letterpress
Dimensions: Sheet: 2 3/8 × 2 15/16 in. (6.1 × 7.4 cm)
Classification: Prints
Credit Line: Gift of Junius S. Morgan, 1926
Object Number: 26.86.171
Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints

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