The Morning of Life

The Morning of Life 1861 by Samuel Palmer (1805-1881). Etching

In this 1872 impression of a state 7 of 7 etching the composition shows the glowing morning sun illuminating dense woodland with a small stream running through it. On the right a man can be seen washing a sheep in the stream. On the left two children are struggling with a sheep they are trying to bring to the stream to be washed. In the foreground a young woman kneels on a grassy bank gathering fallen apples in her basket. She is regarded by a man who watches her from the water’s edge.

This is Palmer’s tenth etching which he began in 1861 and developed over many years. It was originally intended as an illustration to a classical subject but Palmer transformed it into a pastoral scene.

Samuel Palmer is considered to be one of Britain’s most original artists, and a key figure in the Romantic movement.