Beschreibung:

Hull (William, 1820-1880 & Edward, 1823-1906). Dickens & Rochester, Original Drawings by E. & W. Hull, 1879-83, an album containing 22 drawings in watercolour, grey wash, pencil and black ink, all illustrating scenes and locations relating to the early life of Charles Dickens in Rochester, of which 11 are signed or initialled by Edward Hull and 7 are signed by William Hull 230 x 340mm (12 x 13.3ins), or smaller, each with old caption in pencil, and page reference to facing leaf, each mounted on thick card leaves, two with upper outer blank corner damage, bookplate of F. Reddaway to front pastedown, all edges gilt, contemporary maroon full morocco gilt, a little rubbed and outer corners bumped, contained in slightly later cloth portfolio. An interesting group of original illustrations on the theme of the early life of Charles Dickens published in Robert Langton’s Childhood and Youth of Charles Dickens (1883). Edward Hull (1823-1906) was an illustrator and watercolour artist, who exhibited at the Royal Academy but was chiefly employed as an illustrator by The Illustrated Times. William Hull (1820-1880), the English watercolour artist and illustrator, provided illustrations for Langton’s Charles Dickens and Rochester, as well as The Childhood and Youth of Charles Dickens In his preface to the enlarged and revised edition of the latter work, published in 1891, the author states that he visited Rochester in August 1879 ‘in company with the late Mr. William Hull in order to make the sketches’. On page 148, the author comments on Dickens’ description of the ballroom at the Bull Hotel, Rochester, in Pickwick Papers: ‘“It was a long room, with crimson-covered benches, and wax-candles in glass chandeliers. The musicians were securely confined in an elevated den” .. Mr. Hull’s sketch is a capital representation of the entrance end of this room, and shows the little orchestra as it was and is to the present day’, the illustration for which is included in this album. (1)