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| The Book by Henry Bursill at Project Gutenberg |
I need
not explain how these Shadows were suggested, to any one who has seen WILKIE’S
picture, “The Rabbit on the Wall.” But by what pains they were invented can
never be revealed; for it is known to my tortured digits alone, and they,
luckily for me, are dumb. I calculate that I put my ten fingers through
hundreds of various exercises before my “Bird” took wing; my left little finger
thrills at the memory of “Grandpapa”; and my thumbs gave in no less than twenty
times before “Boy” was accomplished. Yet now
how easy it is to make the “Duck” to quack, the “Donkey” to bray, “Toby” to wag
his tail, and the “Rabbit” to munch his unsubstantial meal.
Of
course the Shadows are not to be reproduced perfectly, on “one trial only”; but
I believe that in each case I have drawn the due position of the fingers with
such care, that the most difficult subject may be accomplished after a few
minutes; nor need ingenious youth or parental fondness confine their endeavors
to the sketches contained in this book. With a little ingenuity and some
patience, new shadows may be produced; and not unfrequently figures appear that
one never dreamed of attempting.
Other
Books of Shadows have been published; but it will be seen at a glance that mine
bears affinity to none. Some of my sketches were made years ago, others when a
student at the Academy. Indeed, the Shadows have often been displayed on the
walls of my studio, much to the amusement of fellow-students, who would, I am
sure, at any time bear witness to their originality. HENRY BURSILL, December, 1858.
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| 72 Illustrated Shadowgraphs and Manual Alphabet unloaded by Beverly here. |
“This 5 1/2 by 7 inch pamphlet was published c. 1900. I posted a scan
of one page of hand shadows in 2008 and it has proved very popular. I
have been asked to post additional pages. I recently found it and have
scanned all the pages including the manual alphabet.”
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