Thomas Burke & William Hamilton

Shakspeare. Cymbeline. Act I, Scene II. Cymbeline's palace in Britain. Imogen, Posthumus, Queen, Cymbeline, etc. Published Sept. 29, 1795 by John & Josiah Boydell, at the Shakspeare Gallery, Pall Mall; & at No. 90, Cheapside, London. Engraved by Thomas Burke. Painted by W. Hamilton R. A.

[Putting a on the ring.]
Posthumus. Remain, remain thou here
While sense can keep it on. And,
sweetest, fairest,
As I my poor self did exchange for you,
To your so infinite loss, so in our tirifles
I still win of you: for my sake wear this;
It is a manacle of love; I'll place it
Upon this fairest prisoner.

[Putting a bracelet upon her arm.]
Imogen. O, the gods!
When shall we see again?

Enter CYMBELINE and the Lords.

Posthumus. Alack, the King!
Cymbeline. Thou basest thing, avoid! hence, from my sight!
If after this command thou fraught the court
With thy unworthiness, thou diest: away!
Thou'rt poison to by blood.

Posthumus. The gods protect you!
And bless the good remainders of the court! I am Gone.

Exit. * William Shakespeare

In William Shakespeare's play, "Cymbeline. Act I, Scene II", the king's daughter, Imogen has secretly married the poor but worthy nobleman, Posthumus Leonatus. The queen, Imogen's villainous step-mother, desires to wed her dim-witted and malicious son, Cloten to Imogen and reveals the secret wedding to the king. Thus, Cymbeline, King of the Britons, banishes Posthumus to Rome. In this engraving, the queen looks over the king's shoulder as he angrily throws aside a curtain when he spots the young lovers at the foot of the stairs and sees Posthumus putting a bracelet on Imogen's wrist. Other characters in the room include a boy hiding behind the curtain near King Cymbeline (Cunobelinus), and the guard at the entrance of the terrace where the king and queen stand.

In William Shakespeare's play, Cymbeline is the King of the Britons, a good man, but not particularly brilliant. He had two sons, Guiderius, and Arviragus, (who he believes are dead), and a daughter, Imogen, (now heir to the throne), by his first marriage. The boys were kidnapped and raised in the mountains as hunters by Belarius (now known as Morgan), one of the King's most loyal and greatest generals, falsely accused of treason. Twenty years have passed, Guiderius (now known as Polydore), and Arviragus (now known as Cadwall), are strong and valiant young men. The King has since taken a second wife, a beautiful, but malevolent woman, and mother of the dim-witted and malicious Cloten. The Queen has no trouble manipulating the old king and is responsible for starting the war against the Romans. The king's daughter, Imogen has secretly married Posthumus Leonatus, an orphan, and a poor but worthy nobleman who was brought up in the king's court. The queen, Imogen's villainous step-mother, desires to wed her unbearable son, Cloten to Imogen. She quickly reveals their secret wedding (elopement) to the king, thus, Cymbeline, has no option but to banish Posthumus to Rome. When Leonatus Posthumus is in Rome, he is given false evidence of his Imogen's infidelity by Jachimo (a rogue who believes himself to be the best seducer of women and a great lover) . Enraged, Leonatus, dispatches his and Imogen's loyal servant, Pisanio to Milford Haven and ordered to slay her. Pisario is unable to fulfill his master's wishes, and convinces Imogen to escape disguised as a man; suggesting she should go to Rome, find Leonatus and convince him of her innocence. Imogen (disguised as the youth, Fidele) is discovered in a mountain cave, the home of the hunters, Morgan and his two sons, (her brothers, the royal princes). They quickly grow fond of the lad and decide to protect him. The Queen is aware Imogen is still alive, so she sends Pisario to give her some medicine (which to the Queens knowledge is poison, but is actually a sleeping potion). Imogen takes the potion and falls into a deep sleep, thus they all believe she has died. Having forced Pisanio to confess where Imogen is hiding, Cloten, wearing Leonatus's clothes, and with intent to defile her honour, goes off to the mountains in her search, a place where he will meet his death at the hands of Cymbeline's oldest son, Guiderius. He then places the body by the dead youth, Fidele (Imogen). When Imogen awakens, she is devastated as she fears the identity of the body by her side is Leonatus. Cymbeline's sons Guiderius, and Arviragus, along with Belarius join the war, help defeat the Romans and save the King Cymbeline. In the End, The Queen falls ill after Cloten disappears, but before she dies confesses her wicked deeds. Jachimo (the Italian nobleman, brother of the ruler of Sienna and the rogue who accused Imogen of infidelity), was also remorseful and confesses to his lies. The true identity of Guiderius, and Arviragus, the King's sons, is revealed. Both Imogen and Leonatus live, and all is forgiven. etc. etc.

This original engraving is a 'First Edition Impression': 4. 'First Edition Impressions'. The completed set of Boydell's Shakespeare engravings was published in London in 1803. The full publisher's address appears along the lower margin as well as the text for the play. The heading, 'Shakspeare', is now filled in with stippling. Both first edition impressions and proofs were most often printed on either hand-made, laid paper or wove paper bearing the 'J. Whatman' watermark. The text below the image of this proof impression reads;

Shakspeare. Cymbeline. Act I, Scene II. Cymbeline's palace in Britain. Imogen, Posthumus, Queen, Cymbeline, etc. Published Sept. 29, 1795 by John & Josiah Boydell, at the Shakspeare Gallery, Pall Mall; & at No. 90, Cheapside, London. Engraved by Thomas Burke. Painted by W. Hamilton R. A

Post. _____For my sake, wear this;
It is a manacle of love; I'll place it
Upon this fairest prisoner.
Imo. O, the gods!
When shall we see again?
Post. Alack, the King!

An Important Note on Boydell States and Editions: Proof impressions and true first edition impressions are easily identified by their fine lines and strong contrasts of black and white tones. Later more common editions print in a more overall grey tone and contain areas of re-working. Briefly, the publishing history of these great engravings can be categorized into five states or editions:

1. 'Artist's Proofs'. These are the earliest of states and were printed in only a handful of impressions. They are identified not only by their vibrant lines and tones but by the fact that they lack any letters along the lower margin.
2. 'Proofs Before Title'. These impressions usually contain the names of the artist, publisher and engraver along the lower margin. They lack the title of the specific play depicted and usually the heading -- 'Shakspeare' -- is smaller than in the published edition. Once again, this state was printed in a very small numbers.
3. 'Open Letter Proofs'. These impressions bear the title of the play. the heading, 'Shakspeare' (Shakespeare), is yet to be filled in with stippling. These impressions were printed before the publication of the first edition and were probably struck from the plate at a customer's request. Perhaps ten to twenty Open Letter Proofs exist for each engraving.
4. 'First Edition Impressions'. The completed set of Boydell's Shakespeare engravings was published in London in 1803. The full publisher's address appears along the lower margin as well as the text for the play. The heading, 'Shakspeare', is now filled in with stippling. Both first edition impressions and proofs were most often printed on either hand-made, laid paper or wove paper bearing the 'J. Whatman' watermark.
5. 'Posthumous Impressions and Restrikes' As early as 1807, John Stockdale of London issued a second edition of the Shakespeare prints. They continued to be published throughout the first half of the nineteenth century. Finally, in 1852, an enterprising dentist in New York City (with the delightful name of Shearjashub Spooner) acquired the plates, restored them and produced the last edition. These prints are most commonly offered for sale.

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