America, a prophecy Pl.18
1793
In this striking plate from *America, a Prophecy*, William Blake depicts Urizen, a giant representing oppressive law and reason, curled up like a sleeping mountain. Tiny figures stand on his back and arm, looking insignificant against his massive, rocky form. The handwritten text below describes Urizen weeping tears that turn into "grey-brown snows," a metaphor for the cold, stifling nature of rigid dogma. Blake actually invented a unique method called "illuminated printing" for books like this, etching text and images onto the same copper plate and coloring them by hand, making every copy a unique original.
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