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Sketch for "The Thought of Death alone, the Fear Destroys"
About the Artwork
This sketch of a shepherd sleeping with his dog at the edge of a precipice relates to one of the nearly 550 watercolors that William Blake created for the 1797 edition of Edward Young’s The Complaint, and the Consolation; or, Night Thoughts, a long poem about death and salvation originally published in 1742–45. Blake worked extensively with books as an author and illustrator, and also engraved the work of others for publication. Night Thoughts was one of his most ambitious commercial projects. Unfortunately, only one of the four planned volumes was ever produced, since Richard Edwards, who had commissioned the work, closed his publishing business.
Provenance
William A. White, Brooklyn, NY (The Rosenbach Museum & Library, Philadelphia, PA) October 20, 1932-: The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
Exhibition history
Drawings from the Museum Collection. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (May 28-December 9, 1937). Drawings from the Collection of Sir Robert Witt, London. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (September 30-October 30, 1938). Drawings from the Museum Collection. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (July 11-October 3, 1940). Drawings from the Museum Collection. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 17-August 24, 1942). 40th Anniversary Exhibition of the Print Club of Cleveland. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (December 3, 1959-January 20, 1960). Wunderblock. The Royal Riding School, Vienna, Austria (April 27-August 26, 1989). Fairy Tales and Fables: Illustration and Storytelling in Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (May 4-September 8, 2024).
Quick Overview
- Artist
- William Blake (British, 1757–1827)
- Date
- c. 1795
- Medium
- graphite on paper
- Dimensions
- Sheet: 17 x 30.8 cm (6 11/16 x 12 1/8 in.)
- Type
- Drawing
- Classification
- Drawing
- Department
- Drawings
- Credit line
- Gift of The Print Club of Cleveland
- Accession no.
- 1932.318
More by William Blake in museum collections
Data retrieved from the Cleveland Museum of Art on October 8, 2026. The museum may have updated its record since.
Open-access museum record · AT-00011369
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