Page:Life of William Blake, Gilchrist.djvu/477

 finished copy of the Songs of Innocence and Experience, at 20l.; Lord Egremont, Sir Thomas Lawrence, Mr. Tatham, and others. They considered it almost giving the money, even when they chose copies of the obviously beautiful Songs. Some of the last drawings executed or, at least, finished by Blake, were two commissioned by Sir Thomas Lawrence,—'that admirable judge of art,' as he was then considered, and in a certain fastidious way, was; certainly the enthusiastic accumulator of a princely and matchless collection of drawings by the old masters. Sir Thomas gave fifteen guineas apiece for these designs of Blake's. One was The Wise and Foolish Virgins, the other The Dream of Queen Katherine; both repetitions, though not literal ones, of careful drawings made for Mr. Butts. The Dream of Queen Katherine is among Blake's most highly finished and elaborate water-colour drawings, and one of his most beautiful and imaginative.

During these last years, Blake lavished many finishing touches on his large fresco of the Last Judgment, of which subject we had to mention, twenty years back, two watercolour drawings—one for Blair's Grave, and the other for the Countess of Egremont. The fresco was a very different and much fuller composition than either, containing some thousand figures. It was an especial favourite with the artist and, according to Smith, would have been exhibited at the Academy had Blake lived another year. Nobody could be found to give twenty-five guineas for it then. I have been unable to discover in whose possession this singularly interesting and important work now is, and only know it from hearsay. Smith had seen the picture, and hands down a word or two on its executive peculiarities. 'The lights of this extraordinary performance,' writes he, 'have the appearance of silver and gold; but, upon Mrs. Blake assuring me that there was no silver used, I found, upon a closer examination, that a blue wash had been passed over those parts of the gilding which receded; and the lights of the forward objects, which were also of gold, were heightened