Ernest Howard Shepard (1879-1976)

"E[e]yore's birthday"

Details
Ernest Howard Shepard (1879-1976)
"E[e]yore's birthday"
signed 'EH Shepard' and inscribed as title
pencil, pen and black ink and wash, unframed
9½ x 7in. (24 x 18cm.)
together with a letter from Shepard to the present vendor thanking her for her monetary contribution and pot of honey and expressing his pleasure at her and her son's happiness with the piece.
Provenance
Purchased from Shepard by the present owner

Lot Essay

In A.A. Milne's "In which Eeyore has a birthday and gets two presents" published in Winnie-the-Pooh, 1926, a similar tree and river scene can be seen with Eeyore standing alone assessing his reflection in the water. In the story, Pooh and Piglet come and see Eeyore to congratulate him on his birthday. Piglet carries the remnants of a popped balloon. Although this image does not appear in the 1926 edition, it is possible that this was an unpublished drawing for the story.

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