From:Williamson Art Gallery and Museum
Name/TitleRevelation
About this objectRaymond Hawthorn (1917-1997) was a British wood engraver and printmaker. Born in Dorset in 1917, he studied art at the Coventry School of Art from 1935-9 and Hornsey School of Art from 1939-40. He was local to the Wirral, being a member of the Wirral Society of Arts and a teacher at the Laird School of Art. Throughout his career, he created collections of engravings to be used as illustrations in books, for example, Les Liaisons Dangereuses (Pierre Choderlos de Laclos, trans. Richard Aldington, 1962), The Life of Alexander the Great (trans. Aubrey de Sélincourt, 1970) and, The Rise and Fall of Athens (Ian Scott-Kilvert, 1967). His artistic process involved engraving woodblocks for prints as well as watercolour paintings. His work is complex, detailed and uses a monochrome palette. This design comes from a collection made for a Pelican Edition of Commentaries on the New Testament published in the late 20th century.
This print depicts events from Revelation, which include the figures of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse who appear at the Second Coming. These are Conquest / Pestilence riding a white horse holding a bow, War riding a red horse holding a sword, Famine riding a black horse holding the Scales of Justice and Death riding a pale horse holding a trident. A woodblock and watercolour of this design are also in the gallery's collection
MakerHawthorn, Raymond (1917-1997)
Maker Roleengraver
Period20th century
Medium and Materialsink on paper
Style and Iconographyreligious
Inscription and Marks"Revelation"
"Revelation"
Techniqueprint
Measurementsprint height: 9.5cm
print width: 11.5cm
mount height: 24cm
mount width:16cm
Subject and Association KeywordsChristianity
Subject and Association Keywordsfour horsemen of the apocalypse
Subject and Association Keywordswar
Subject and Association Keywordsdeath
Credit LinePresented by Mark R. Hammer, 2026
Object Typeprint
Object numberBIKGM.9373
Copyright LicenceAll rights reserved
