Titelvignet til S. Richardson: "Miss Clarissa Harlowes Historie", fjerde del 1783

This is a vignette made by Georg Christian Schule, sometime around the turn of the 19th century, created as the title-page illustration for the fourth part of Samuel Richardson's novel "Clarissa Harlowe." The print was created by etching, a process involving coating a metal plate with wax, drawing an image through it with a sharp needle, and then immersing the plate in acid. The acid bites into the exposed metal, leaving an image that can be inked and printed. This was a highly skilled, labor-intensive process, demanding years of training. But etching allowed for the relatively easy reproduction of images, and therefore the widespread dissemination of ideas. Note the contrast between the dark lines and the light paper. The etched lines capture a dramatic scene, framed by a delicate, decorative border. It brings a novel, a popular form of literature in the late 1700's, to life through the labor and skill of the printmaker. This vignette reminds us that even seemingly simple images are the product of complex processes, and of course, human labor.