William Harvey (engraver)

William Harvey (13 July 1796 – 1866) was an English engraver and designer.

Born at Newcastle upon Tyne, Harvey was the son of a bath-keeper. At the age of 14, he was apprenticed to Thomas Bewick, and became one of his favorite pupils. Bewick describes him as one "who both as an engraver & designer, stands preeminent" at his day (Memoir, p. 200). He engraved many blocks for Bewick's Aesop's Fables (1818).

Harvey moved to London in 1817, studying drawing with Benjamin Haydon, and anatomy with Charles Bell. In 1821, he engraved for Haydon on wood, in imitation of copper-plate, the large block of the Assassination of L. S. Dentatus. This was probably the then most ambitious block which had been cut in England.

Harvey switched to design, after the death of John Thurston, the then leading wood designer in London. One of his earliest works is his illustrations for Alexander Henderson's History of Ancient and Modern Wines in 1824.

His masterpieces are his illustrations to Northcote's Fables (1823–33) and to E. W. Lane's The Arabian Nights' Entertainments (1838–40).

Harvey is buried in Richmond Cemetery.

Illustration to The Story of Azeez and Azeezeh

Illustration to The Story of the Two Royal Mendicants

Illustration to The Story of the Fisherman

Illustration to The Story of uns El-Wojood

Illustration to The Story of Alee of Cairo

Illustration to The Story of the Prince Kamar ez-Zeman, and the Princess Budoor

Illustration to The Story of Alee the son of Bekkar, and Shems en-Nahr

Illustration to The Story of the Prince Kamar ez-Zeman, and the Princess Budoor

Illustration to The Story of Abd Allah of the Land and Abd Allah of the Sea

Illustration to The Story of ... El-Ward Fi-l-Akma'm

Illustration to The Story of the Two Princes El-Amjad and El-As'ad

Illustration to The Fifth Voyage of Es-Sindbad of the Sea

Illustration in notes to The Story of Maaroof

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