Volkswacht Bodensee - Print of Blake 'Tyger' poem blazes path to auction record

The "exceptionally rare" print comes from the first issue of Blake's "Songs Of Experience", dating from around 1794.

The fee far exceeded its pre-sale estimate of £80,000-£120,000 and set a new record at auction for a Blake print, Christie's said.

It was snapped up by an anonymous buyer after more than two minutes of "fiercely competitive bidding" at Christie's headquarters in London.

"This is a notable period of time for competitive bidding on a work at auction," a Christie's spokesperson said.

"The Tyger" is one of the most anthologised poems in the English language.

Seven other prints from his "Songs Of Experience" work were also on sale at Wednesday's auction.

The group of eight works went for a combined total of £680,720 to different buyers.

"William Blake's visionary words and images, seen so beautifully in this rare collection of colour relief etchings, from one of the earliest issues of his collection of poems Songs of Experience, continue to fire the imagination," said Murray Macaulay, Christie's Head of Prints Europe, after the sale.

Largely unrecognised during his lifetime, Blake (1757-1827) is now viewed as a towering figure in English literature and art.

The print that sold for the record fee on Wednesday once belonged to "The Wind in the Willows" author Kenneth Grahame.

D.Schlegel--VB