Thomas Gray's Contribution to the Study of Medieval Architecture

Abstract

One of Thomas Gray’s admired poetic gifts was the ability to convey striking visual images with a very few, aptly chosen words. As Samuel Johnson put it, Gray’s Elegy written in a Country Church-Yard ‘abounds with images which find a mirrour in every mind’. The visual imagery in Gray’s poetry attests not only to his ability to use words, but also to his ability to use his eyes. Keen observation that underlies Gray’s poetic images also emerges in prose in his letters, journals, and notebooks. He wrote memorable descriptions of landscape. His discerning criticism of paintings is well known, as is his recording of extensive observations in the field of natural history.