William Bond & Henry Singleton

Samson and Delilah

William Bond's original stipple engraving, "Samson and Delilah" is based upon a design created by the British artist, Henry Singleton. It is printed upon late eighteenth century wove as published around 1790. The scene depicts Samson during the feast in the Temple of Dagon after his captors brought him out of prison to make sport of him. However, the artist has depicted this scene with Delilah expressing silent remorse for her cruel act. "Samson and Delilah" is a superb, original example of the talents of William Bond and of the art of the eighteenth century British stipple engraving.

Original Stipple Engraving by the British artist, William Bond designed by Henry Singleton.

Samson and Delilah

Selected Directories in our Gallery (Art of The Print / www.artoftheprint.com), with a focus on the area of interest for this original work of art.
Art of the Print / www.artoftheprint.com sells international fine art. Our collection consists of original paintings, watercolors, drawings, and original prints, such as etchings, engravings, lithographs, woodcuts, silk-screens, aquatints, mezzotints, linocuts, monoprints, and other mediums of original art. All of these works of art have been created by prominent and established painters, illustrators, watercolour artists and printmakers from around the world. The art in our gallery ranges from the early Renaissance period to the modern and contemporary art period. You can view other original artworks similar to the subject under discussion on this page listed in the following art directories.
Century:
Old Master Artist Index	The 'Old Master' artist directory contains a selection of original works of art created by international painters, illustrators and graphic artists. These original works date from the Renaissance period to the end of the 1700's.
Country:
British Artists Index	The 'British Art' directory contains a listing of original works of art created by artists from England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales, and or art with a British theme. The artworks date from the 17th century to the 20th century.
Subject:
Children Portrayed in Art Index	The 'Children in Art' directory contains a selection of original works of art with depictions of children. Children at play and at work and their relationships to others (particularly their mothers) are major themes.
Women Portrayed in Art Index	The 'Women in Art' directory contains a selection of original works of art with depictions of women in an almost infinite variety of roles, such as women as an object of beauty & desire, at work and of course, motherhood are major themes, as well as many other representations of women have emerged in the fine arts throughout the centuries.

Customer inquiries: Contact us or phone Greg & Connie (905) 957-6666

Title:	Samson and Delilah
Engraver:	Bond, William (London, c. 1750 - 1809)
Designer:	Singleton, Henry (London, 1766 - 1839)
Date:	c. 1790
Medium:	Original Stipple Engraving
Note:	William Bond: Like most of the great eighteenth century stipple engravers, William Bond studied under Bartolozzi. His first engraved work of art was published in 1772, and he continued to create engravings until 1807. During the latter part of the century William Bond was considered to be among the greatest stipple engravers, along with Richard Earlom, John Ogborne and Charles Turner. William Bond also had the distinction of being nominated the first President of the Society of Engravers when it was founded in 1803.
	Samson and Delilah is listed as one of William Bond's greatest works of art and is based upon a design created by the British artist, Henry Singleton.* It is composed entirely of stippling and expresses a huge range of beautifully delineated tonal values. The scene depicts Samson moments before his final, fatal act. It will be recalled that Samson was the Israelite leader in the struggle against the then dominant Philistines. Graced with almost superhuman strength, Delilah seduced him and gained the secret of his powers. While he slept, she had his hair shaved off. His strength gone, the Philistines arrested Samson and blinded him. During a feast in the Temple of Dagon, his captors brought Samson out of his prison to make sport of him. (The artist has here depicted this scene with Delilah expressing silent remorse for her cruel act.) However, Samson's hair had grown back, and praying to God for his power, he pulled down the supporting columns thus killing himself and destroying more than three thousand Philistines. (Ian Mackenzie, British Prints: Dictionary and Price Guide, Antique Collectors' Club, Suffolk, 1987, p. 57.)
	Stipple Engraving: When the famous Italian engraver, Francesco Bartolozzi (Florence, Italy, 1727 - Lisbon, Portugal, 1815), came to settle permanently in England in 1764 he brought with him a new technique of engraving that would dominate British art through the last two decades of the eighteenth century. This was the golden era of the 'stipple' engraving. Briefly, a stipple engraving was created by employing masses of flicks and dots rather than solid lines, making it a tonal method. Stippling was best suited for capturing the delicate tones within figure compositions. Unfortunately it became all but obsolete by the first decade of the nineteenth century because the technique was very complex and time consuming.
Size:	16 3/4 X 20 1/2 (Sizes in inches are approximate, height preceding width of plate-mark or image.)
	Matted with 100% Archival Materials
Condition:	Printed upon late eighteenth century wove paper and with margins trimmed to the image. Containing marginal damage along the extreme edges, particularly to the lower left corner. As well, several restored scrapes are within the image. Otherwise, this is a very early impression bearing all the fine shades and tones of an initial printing. One should here take note that this engraving in fine condition has sold at auction for over $1,000. "Samson and Delilah" is a superb, original example of the talents of William Bond and of the art of the eighteenth century British stipple engraving.
Price:	Sold - The price is no longer available.
Important Information:	The artist biographies, research and or information pertaining to all the original works of art posted on our pages has been written and designed by Greg & Connie Peters exclusively for our site, (www.artoftheprint.com). Please visit us regularly to view the latest artworks offered for sale. We will soon be posting an update of our most recent research and include the biographical and historical information pertaining to our next collection of original works of art created by artists throughout the centuries. We hope you found the information you were looking for and that it has been beneficial. Our Gallery, (Art of the Print / www.artoftheprint.com) guarantees the authenticity of every work of art we sell 100%. Full documentation and certification is provided. We offer a wide selection of international fine art dating from the early Renaissance to the contemporary art period.