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| Painting Name | Even I Too! Even I Too! |
| Painter Name | Sidney H. Sime |
| Material | Illustration |
| Current Location | Public collection |
Sidney H. Sime was a well-revered artist in his time as he illustrated for the works of the Irish writer Lord Dunsany. Illustrator like Roger Dean and H. P. Lovecraft were the utmost fans of his illustrations.
The illustration titled ‘Even I too! Even I too!’ is a line uttered by the king of Babbulkund from Lord Dunsany’s story The Fall of Babbulkund. It tells a story about some travellers who embark a journey to see the wondrous city of Babbulkund appraisingly called as the city of Marvel. During the way they encounters with many traveller coming back. They sit with them to hear the glory of Babbulkund. As they journeys nearer the Babbulkund they met more and more travellers and heard the eulogy. Drastically, at the end, when they reached the location, there was no Babbulkund at the bank of the river. The hidden prophecy appeared in the king’s dreams had become true.
This particular scene depicts the time when the second traveller came and described the king Nehemoth’s daily routine in the city. After roaming around, at last he stops at the garden where he sits on an ivory throne and contemplates the sun until it sets down. At the moment, he feels a little sad inside and utters the words: ‘Even I too! Even I too!’
Here the lines describe the king’s sorrow. The meaning of his utterance could be understood as that he was telling the sun in despaired manner that even he will set one day just like the sun which seems more logical as the writer has described the king having some trouble into the face at the time.
Sidney Sime has included all the main elements of the allegory in the scene. The Babbulkund, the city of marvel perceivable in the background and the king is sitting on his ivory throne in the garden with doomed face. The curtain hanging behind him has a painting of a grinning demon holding maybe a key. We can say that the painter is giving us the hint about the coming annihilation of the city and the demon as the symbol of annihilation.
This monotone painting is only one creation of the attained artist. You can read the full book (The Swords of Welleran and other stories) here with Sidney Sime’s Illustrations.
