Explore Over 3,000 Victorian Illustrations of Shakespeare’s Works

It is commonly said that William Shakespeare‘s works cannot be fully appreciated until they are performed on stage, as the thirty-eight plays by “The Bard” were meant to be seen. Actors trained to convey the pain of Romeo upon finding Juliet in the tomb, the strange humor of the woodland characters who frolic on a Midsummer Night, and the cold cunning of Lady Macbeth. Dramatic monologues, such as Hamlet to the skull must be said in proper cadence.

While reading Shakespeare's works is still a thrilling experience for literary fiends, illustrations can help bring a little of the stage's magic to the page. Michael John Goodman—who describes himself as an “independent researcher, writer, educator, curator and image-maker”—has made this magic easy no matter what edition you have. His Victorian Illustrated Shakespeare Archive collects over 3,000 illustrations from 19th-century British editions of Shakespeare’s Complete Works.

Peruse the website however you wish, whether by play or by historic edition. The latter include those edited by Charles Knight, Kenny Meadows, John Tallis, and others. Many illustrators and engravers are also represented. The works span the Victorian period, a segment of British history that roughly tracks the lifespan of one of Britain's longest-living monarchs.

Goodman has developed an innovative way to search the archive. He has created word clouds describing the subjects of the illustrations. Find “animals,” “crowns,” “death,” and your favorite characters. This immersive experience can show you how the Victorians imagine life in Elizabethan London or ancient Egypt, with varying accuracy and cultural awareness.

The artists responsible for these historic sketches conveyed emotion in each face using different artistic styles, some more Romantic, others like a children's book to modern eyes. Check out a collection of wood engravings, or browse, and you will notice that famous actors of the day were shown in their roles. They are depicted through a process known as photogravure plates. In this process, a negative is essentially transferred to a copper plate through a delicate operation that then allows for mass printing. The Victorian Illustrated Shakespeare Archive is not just a window into Shakespeare but also a glimpse into how people have read, admired, and interpreted his work over the centuries.

“Cleopatra, Charmian and the Death of Iras,” Antony and Cleopatra, Illustrated by H. C. Selous and engraved by Frederick Wentworth, 1860s. (Photo: Victorian Illustrated Shakespeare Archive
by Michael John Goodman)

Check out Hamlet, Macbeth, Henry VIII, and more notable characters from The Bard's works.

“Mr. George Bennett as King Henry the Eighth,” from Henry VIII, From a Daguerreotype by Paine of Islington, 1850. (Photo: Victorian Illustrated Shakespeare Archive
by Michael John Goodman)

“Titania and Bottom,” A Midsummer Night's Dream, 1880. (Photo: Victorian Illustrated Shakespeare Archive
by Michael John Goodman)

“Garrick as Richard 3rd,” Richard III, illustrated by Hogarth and engraved by Porthbury, 1850. (Photo: Victorian Illustrated Shakespeare Archive by Michael John Goodman)