This site is a reading of visual materials available in five eighteenth-century editions of Samuel Richardson's Pamela. The reading is focusing on the role of illustrations that accompany the text of the novel, and particularly on the illustrations as indicative of gradual changes in cultural values, sense of propriety, fashion, taste etc. We take the books to be indicative of the affordability of reading, current aesthetics of printed publications, and roles of particular artists in the dynamic life of novels as literary, cultural, and commercial products of 18th-century England.

The visuals from different editions can be navigated through the page dedicated solely to an overview of the illustrations by edition, or be looked up as references that appear throughout the pages on illustration techniques, print culture, or prominent artists, which provide additional information on the cultural and artistic contexts in which specific editions had appeared.