The Book of Los (1976)

Title

The Book of Los (1976)

Original Date:

1795

Facsimile Date:

1976

Publisher:

Trianon Press

Physical Description:

5 plates ; 30 cm.

Background Information:

The book of Los, composed in 1795, is related to The Book of Ahania. Blake made one copy of each, then set them aside. The two works represent bits and pieces of Blake’s thought while he was developing his mythology. They also represent his experimentation with printing techniques. For both works he etched the plates with a fine pen, rather than using the relief etching method, which involved the application of acid. Trianon’s facsimile is based on copy A. The Union College copy was purchased by the Friends of the Library.

Student Commentary:

Overview: The Book of Los is a retelling, in a way, of the events in The Book of Urizen, composed a year earlier. When the universe was created, it was initially an everlasting dark void. Los fell through that void for eternity, until he was granted a human form and was born again. As his body developed rather slowly, his mind had ages to learn and grow. After nearly drowning due to his infantile lungs, Los took out his rage on Urizen by chaining him up. Using the flames from the anvil where he created the chains for Urizen, Los created an Orb which eventually became the Sun. In this piece, Blake uses imagery to contrast the themes of burdens, light, and fire. This piece is interesting because it provides an alternate perspective on one of Blake’s earlier works. – Jessica Rosenthal ‘18

Links

Book at the William Blake Archive

Find this Book in Schaffer Library

Source

William Blake@Union Digital Collection