Vivian Bewick
Montezumas Daughter, original vintage book cover

Wash and gouache
34 x 28 cm

This work was originally a book cover design for the historical adventure novel ‘Montezumas Daughter’ by the Victorian writer Sir Henry Rider Haggard. The cover depicts two men, presumably including the protagonist Harry Thurston, engaged in a duel. As one of the subjects falls across the cover, his hand reaching helplessly outwards, Bewick alludes to the tragic themes explored in this intriguing novel exploring colonialism and the Spanish Inquisition. On the reverse of this cover, Bewick personally wrote the medium and his address at Buckhurst Hall, rendering it a unique addition to any collection.

Vivian Bewick (1912–1999) was a British artist and educator, notable for his contributions to mid-20th-century art and his role as a tutor at the Buckhurst Hill Community Association (BHCA). He was also a descendant of Thomas Bewick, the renowned 19th-century engraver celebrated for his depictions of birds and animals.