The first book of Urizen
Contributors: Blake, William, 1757-1827, illustrator, etcher, printer, colorist; Blake, Catherine Boucher, printer; Beckford, William, 1760-1844, former owner; Hooper, Edward William, 1839-1901, former owner; Cumberland, George, 1754-1848, associated name; Theron, Louisa Chapin Hooper, 1874-1975, former owner
Publisher: Printed by Will Blake
Published: 1794
Place of publication: Lambeth [London]
Language: eng
Number of pages: 26
Notes: Unique copy.

Wholly engraved.

Plates produced through Blake's own process of relief etching in 1794. Printed in 1794.

Sold from the library of William Beckford in 1883, bound between The Book of Thel copy A and The Marriage of Heaven and Hell copy A. The volume was acquired by E. W. Hooper, who had it disbound. This copy passed to Hooper's daughter, Mrs. Ward Thoron, who gave it to Harvard University in 1962. For complete provenance, see The William Blake archive and Bentley. The former binding of all three copies, preserved and now housed with this copy, carries a pencil inscription on the front paste-down "Cumberland's sale H. G. [Bohm?]." Keynes & Wolf considered all three titles to have come from George Cumberland's library, but, according to Bentley, only the first title, The book of Thel, copy A, is from Cumberland's library. Cf. Keynes & Wolf, & Bentley (p. 125, 181, and 297-298)

No watermark; printed in green and orangish yellow ochre inks; colored; penned numbers: none.

1-3, 5, 12, 6, 7, 14, 10, 8, 9, 11, 13, 22, 15, 18, 17, 19-21, 23-28.

William Blake archive (viewed July 30, 2014), The first book of Urizen (1794): electronic edition, copy F http://www.blakearchive.org/exist/blake/archive/work.xq?workid=urizen&java=no

Keynes, G. Bib. of William Blake, 42, copy E

Keynes & Wolf. William Blake's illuminated books, The first book of Urizen, copy F [e]

Bentley, G.E. Blake books, 38 (p. 166-185), copy F