Graphic

William Finden and his younger brother, Edward, were renowned English engravers. Their smooth, neat style proved popular and soon the brothers engaged several assistants to publish volumes of engraved plates depicting aspects of English society. Views of Ports and Harbours is one such volume. As the preface describes, this work is comprised of views of most of the principal ports, naval stations, watering places, and fishing-towns on the English coast from Berwick-upon-Tweed to Plymouth.

This beautiful book, a wordless novel, tells a story of the African slave trade and one slave trader’s obsession and tragic downfall—all in 128 powerful woodcuts that combine Art Deco and Expressionist styles. Lynd Ward was one of America’s finest wood engravers, and the detailed, complicated plates in this book show him as a master craftsman and illustrator who could also reveal psychological anguish through his art. The plates in this second-edition copy are reproduced photographically; the front and back covers are bound in papers showing a woodcut-style design in black and white.