Charles John Huffam Dickens was the most popular British novelist of the Victorian era, responsible for some of English literature's most iconic characters. The continuing popularity of his novels and short stories is such that they have never gone out of print.
Charles Dickens at the V&A
Books, manuscripts, correspondence, illustrations, pictures and other objects relating to Charles Dickens’s life an…
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Illustrations for Dickens's novels
Some of the outstanding illustrators and artists of the day were recruited to provide images for Dickens's novels, …
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National Art Library Forster collection
John Forster (1812–76) was a noted biographer, critic, essayist and historian who collected a vast library. He bequ…
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The Dickens manuscripts
Many books, manuscripts, prints and paintings relating to Dickens came to the V&A when John Forster left his librar…
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Charles Dickens: A Tale of Two Cities
A digitised version of the original manuscript of 'A Tale of Two Cities' by Charles Dickens
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Charles Dickens: The Mystery of Edwin Drood
A digitised version of the original manuscript of 'The Mystery of Edwin Drood' by Charles Dickens
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Charles Dickens - David Copperfield
A digitised version of the original manuscript of 'David Copperfield' by Charles Dickens
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The conservation of Charles Dickens' manuscripts
The National Art Library (NAL) in the Victoria and Albert Museum counts amongst its treasures the original manuscri…
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The Novels of Charles Dickens; Bound to Last? The Structural Evolution of a Manuscript's Bindings
The National Art Library at the Victoria and Albert Museum holds the manuscripts of 12 of the novels by Charles Dic…
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What the Victorians read at Christmas
The commercialisation of Christmas, which many today consider a bane of modern life, in fact has its origins in the…
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A Christmas Carol at the Young Vic
A Christmas Carol is a Victorian morality tale of an old and bitter miser, Ebenezer Scrooge, who undergoes a profou…
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Teachers' resource: Victorian social life from paintings
The V&A is one of the best museums in the world for learning about the Victorians. This resource contains an introd…
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British watercolours 1750-1900: illlustration into narrative
The popularity and success of the watercolour societies attracted many illustrators, such as Charles Green, into the field of watercolour painting. Green established his reputation with his illustrations to the novels of Charles Dickens, such as 'Little Nell mending the Puppet's Dress', from The Old Curiosity Shop.
The Book of Hours of Louis XII
The Hours of Louis XII was one of the greatest French illuminated manuscripts of the Renaissance. A prayer book, it was decorated by Jean Bourdichon for the French ruler Louis XII at a time when his court was a principal centre of European art and culture.
Walter Crane cover design for ‘Illustrations of the Victorian Series and Other Wall-Papers’
This design for the cover of a book of wallpapers manufactured by Jeffrey and Co was created by Walter Crane (1845-1915) in 1887. This image shows a winged young man blowing a horn or trumpet, surrounded by swirling acanthus leaves. Walter Crane's monogram - his initials and a crane - can be seen at the bottom right hand corner of the design.
Jainism: Illuminated manuscripts and Jain art
The study, recitation and veneration of sacred scriptures are a primary religious focus of the Jains.
Victorian furniture styles
This page describes various different Victorian styles of furniture. The styles vary and include Japanese designs, medieval and tudor and designs from Liberty & Co.
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V&A 'Charles Jencks' Gift Wrap
Design features Charles Jencks's evolutionary diagram A Sea of Many Streams.
Buy nowEvent - 1900 Cities: The City at the Turn of the Century, from Paris to New York
Tue 25 September 2012 14:00
SHORT COURSE: The years around 1900 represent one of the most vibrant and exciting periods in the history of art and design, when tradition and modernity collide and when the decadence of the fin de siecle encounters the optimism of a new millennium.
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