18th Century Art

Seba, Albertus. Locupletissimi rerum naturalium thesauri accurata descriptio, et iconibus artificiossimis expressio, per universam physices historiam. Amsterdam, Wetsten, Smith, Jans...

"A Canoe of the Sandwich Islands, the Rowers Masked" is an engraving created by Charles Grignion, from a drawing by John Webber (1752-1793), who was the artist on Captain James Cook's 3rd and final voyage of discovery. It is Plate 65 in the atlas of "A Voyage to the Pacific Ocean Undertaken by the Command of His Majesty, for Making Discoveries in the Northern Hemisphere", the official British Admirality sanctioned journal published upon completion of the voyage in London in 1784 by Strahan & Cadell. This famous image of ten Hawaiian rowers transporting a priest who is carrying a feather-covered image of Kukailimoku, the Hawaiian god of war. The priests and paddlers are all wearing gourd masks in their double-hulled canoe with an upright lateen woven sail. Each hull was shaped from a single large Koa log harvested from island rainforests, where they were carved before being transported to the coast. This engraving is presented in a Koa wood frame and a white mat. There are occasional faint spots, but the print is otherwise in very good condition. Koa is the same wood as was used to make the canoe. Koa wood is legendary in Hawaii. Not only is this amazing wood native to Hawaii, but it is known for the deep rich colors and varied grain pattern. Koa has an honored heritage in Hawaii and is highly revered and sacred. The word “koa” means “warrior” in Hawaiian. The warriors of King Kamehameha the Great, created canoes and weapons from a wood plentiful on the Big Island of Hawaii. This wood became synonymous with the warriors themselves, and it became known as koa. The frame measures 20.75" high, 26.75" wide and 0.88" deep. There are three other engravings listed from the official journal of Captain Cook's 3rd voyage available that are presented in identical Koa wood frames and mat (LU117324682022, LU117324684052, LU117324684062). They would make a wonderful grouping for a display of 2, 3 or 4 prints. A discount is available for a grouping depending on the number of items included. Hawaii was discovered by Captain Cook (1728-1779) during this voyage. Hawaii was originally called The Sandwich Islands in honor of The Earl of Sandwich...

Here is a set of four 18th century Italian paintings depicting various romantic dramas. All four painted in old world style and presented in the original stretchers and frames. Findi...

This is an 18th century copperplate engraved portrait of Lieutenant General Talmash by Jacobus Houbraken after a painting by Sir Godfrey Kneller, from "The Heads of Illustrious Perso...

This is a rare 18th Century hand-colored copperplate engraving entitled "Ciconia Nigra" (Black Stork) by Johann Leonhard Frisch is plate 197 fro...

This is a scarce richly hand colored copper plate engraved map of Africa entitled "Guinea Propria, nec non Nigritiae vel Terrae Nigrorum Maxima Pars" by Johann Baptist Homann (1664-1...

This large 18th century etching by Giovanni Battista Piranesi is entitled "Vaso antico di Marmo adornato di eccellenti Sculture si nella parte anteriere che nell' opposta, le quail r...

Seba, Albertus. Locupletissimi rerum naturalium thesauri accurata descriptio, et iconibus artificiossimis expressio, per universam physices historiam. Amsterdam, Wetsten, Smith, Jans...

Friedrich Wigand (Russian, 1800-1853). Portrait of a Young Man, 1841. Oil on canvas, 12.5 x 16 inches. Framed measurement: 17 x 20.5 inches. Signed an...

WILLIAM HOGRTH (1697 - 1764) MR. GARRICK IN THE CHARACTER OF RICHARD THE 3RD (Shakespear Act 5 Scene 7) (Paulson 1970.165 ii/ii; Paulson 1989.165 ii/ii;, Dobson and Armstrong p. 20...

This is a rare 18th Century hand-colored copperplate engraving entitled "Der Storch Ciconia" (White Stork) by Johann Leonhard Frisch is plate 19...

Pair of lithographs of The Temple of Portunus in Rome (Italian: Tempio di Portuno) facade and floor plan by Antoine Desgodetz (French, 1653-1728). These pag...

Adoration of the Shepherds after Peter Paul Rubens (Flemish, 1577-1640), engraved by Pierre-Franois Basan (French, 1723-1797), engraving, c. 1750, in black on ivory laid paper, 282 x 200 mm., with small margins. In very good condition. A fine proof impression, before letters. A draft printing of letters is visible, lower left, below image: “P P Rubens inv.”; lower right: “F. Basan excudit”. Basan’s engraving after Rubens may be modeled after another engraving of the Adoration after Rubens by Theodor Galle (1571-1633), which appeared as an illustration to the 1618 reprint of 1616 edition of “Missale Romanum...

Original copper engraving hand-colored at the time of publication. Nuremberg, 1720.

"Dessine par Gallier" is a hand-colored engraving and etching by Pierre Laurent (1739-1809) and Pierre Audouin (1768-1822) after a painting by Eustache Le Sueur...

18th century hand-colored engraving on laid paper by M.R. veuve Tardieu (1732-1826) of "L'Hippotame Jeune" by French illustrater Jacques de Seve (fl. 1...

One Christmas as a 12-year-old boy, John was given a set of oil paints and an easel. Painting revealed a whole new world of colour and texture, and even now, over 40 years later, he ...

Artist

Pair of Framed Giovanni Battista Piranesi Architectural Vases Etchings C.1770 Outstanding pair of antique etchings by Piranesi A Sua Eccellenz...

This is a hand-colored copper plate engraving depicting flowering "Hyacinthus Comosus Spurius" (Hyacinth), "Hyacinthus Anglicus" (Blue Hyacinth), "Palma ...

This is a hand-colored copper plate engraving depicting Ranunculus (Persian Buttercup) flowers from Basilius Besler's landmark work, Hortus Eystettensis (Garden at Eichstatt), first ...

Pair of Antique Paintings With Cherubs After Francois Boucher (1703-1770) Boucher is known for his idyllic and voluptuous paintings on classical themes, decorative allegories, and pastoral scenes. Pair of charming late 18th or early 19th Century oil paintings with Putti playing with bow and arrow...

The two plates in this set were created utilizing both engraving and etching techniques by William Hogarth in 1753, originally as illustrations of his book on aesthetics, entitled "Analysis of Beauty". Due to their popularity, these plates were later published separately. The publication line in the lower right reads: "Designed, Engraved, and Publish'd by Wm. Hogarth, March 5th 1753, according to Act of Parliament." Hogarth's original copper plates were refurbished where needed by James Heath and engravings were republished in London in 1822 by Braddock, Cradock & Joy. This was the last time Hogarth's copper plates were used for printing. Most were melted during World War I for the construction of bombs. These large folio sized "Analysis of Beauty" engravings are presented in antiqued gold-colored frames with double mats; the outer silk mats are light brown-colored and the inner mats are dark brown. Each frame measures 27.38" x 31.25" x 1.13". There is one tiny spot in the right margin of plate 1 and another in the lower margin; the latter could be from the printing process. The prints are otherwise in excellent condition. The "Analysis of Beauty" series is in the collection of many major museums, including: The British Museum, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Tate Museum, The Chicago Art Institute and The Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco. The first engraving (Plate 1) depicts a courtyard of statues which is filled with some of the most famous works of classical sculpture. The most important sculptures are surrounded by less impressive works. The Medicean Venus (#13) is in the center with a statue of Julius Caesar (#19) to the right, elevated on a pulley with a short, overdressed Brutus stands over the falling Caesar. The Apollo Belvedere (#12) is next. A judge stands to the right with his foot on a cherub (#16). Another crying cherub holds a gallows and wipes his tears with the judge's robe. A sphinx (#21) and the drunken Silenus (#107) are below the Venus. Michaelangelo's torso (#54) and a statue of Antonius (#6) are seen in the foreground. The Farnese Hercules (#3) and a bust of another Hercules (#4) under two statuettes of Isis are also included in the scene. The key to these objects is included in the form of a serpentine line winding around a cone (#26), Hogarth's "Line of Beauty". For Hogarth the winding line is an essential element of beauty in art. Hogarth's theory of beauty is communicated in this plate. Plate 2 is thought to represent the Wanstead Assembly, with the Earl of Tynley and his household. It is an adaptation of a scene in the Happy Marriage series, which complements Hogarth's Marriage à la Mode...

"Fluviorum in Europa principis Danubii" is a hand-colored map of the region about the Danube river created by Johann Baptist Homann (1663-1724) in his 'Atlas Novus Terrarum', publish...

SALE ONE WEEK ONLY This painting titled "Mme de Noirmont" is an oil on canvas work from the studio of Nicolas de Largilliere, one of the most prolific and esteemed French portrait p...

This a rare 18th century hand-colored large folio-sized copperplate engraving entitled "Platalea leucorodia" (Spoonbill) by Cornelius Nozeman in volume II of his publication 'Nederlandsche Vogelen', engraved by Christiaan Sepp or his son Jan Christiaan Sepp, published in Amsterdam in 1770. This engraving depicts a Platalea leucorodia Spoonbill, a large bird that lives mainly in Europe, Asia and Africa. It commonly migrates long distances on thermal air currents from the colder Northern European climates to Sub-Saharan Africa in the winter, sometimes as far long as Finland to South Africa. The Asian black stork...

This is a rare 18th Century hand-colored large folio-sized copperplate engraving entitled "Ardea Ciconia" (White Stork) by Cornelius Nozeman in volume II of his publication 'Nederlan...

Artist: Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon (French, 1707-1788) Title: "Ballota (Horehound); Marrubium (White Horehound)" (Didynamie, Gymospermie, Plate 508) Portfolio: Histoire N...

This is a beautifully framed engraving, printed in colors with additional hand coloring, from the famous "Cries of London" series, depicting the lives and professions of the common p...

This is an antique engraved view entitled "Fodinae aerariae Falunenfis, qui orientem fpectat, delineatio" (Copper mining in Falun), Sweden in 1705 from "Sueciae Antiquae et Hodiernae"' published in Stockholm by Erik Dahlberg (1625-1703). The engraving was created by Johannes van den Aveelen (1650-1727), who was an accomplished copperplate engraver who emigrated to Sweden to work on Dahlberg's spectacular book, "Sueciae Antiquae et Hodiernae", which was focused on the views and architecture of Sweden, both in the ancient past and at the time of the publication. This engraving depicts a very active 17th century working scene...

18th Century European Portrait of a Child Saint John the Baptist Oil on Canvas 19 x 14 1/4 inches This lovely and sensitively painting has been examined by a professional restorer w...

Inscriptions: Bottom, plate: Io. Dom. Campiglia del. / Cosmus Mogalli Sculp. Top right, plate: XXIV Summary/Description: Engraving by Cosmus Mogalli after drawing by Giovanni Domenic...

A fine impression with the address of the artist (Autore, Strada Felice) and the price (Paoli 2 1/2) as well as Hind Watermark no.3 (Fleur-de-lys-in-a-Double-Circle), all correspondi...

"Vaso Cinerario di Gran Mole. Le Teste dei Giovenchi mostrano di reggere it pesante Festone composto di Frutti Fiori Grans ed use. Il tuto Necefsario all Vita Umana. Il Restante degl...

This hand-colored copper-plate map of Sweden and adjacent portions of Scandinavia entitled "Regni Sueciae in Omnes suas Subjacentes Provincias accurate divisi Tabula Generalis" was c...

Hand-colored mezzotint engraving printed in color and finished by hand on laid paper from "Phytanthoza Iconographia." Edited by Johann Wihelm Weinmann (1683-1741) with drawings by Ge...

This is an original rare and extremely collectible first octavo edition John James Audubon hand colored lithograph entitled "Brown Pelican, Young First Winter", No. 85, Plate 424, fr...

This is a hand-colored engraving of male and female woodpeckers entitled "1. Le Petit Pie varie, 2. Sa Femelle" by Francois Nicolas Martinet, plate 598 from 'Histoire Naturelle des O...

Landscape with Figures in the English Countryside Pen, ink and graphite with gray and brown washes on laid watermarked paper, c. 1740 Signed by the artist lower left of image: "Chatelain fecit" (see photo) A finished drawing, signed by the artist, showing his inspiration by Claude Lorain (1600 or 1604/5-1682) Provenance: Mathias Komor Works of Art Mary Whelan Prue Warburg (1909-2009) Mary Whelan Prue Warburg (1909-2009), widow of Edward M.M. Warburg, founding Trustee and Board member of MoMA (1932-1958); Metropolitan Museum of Art Honorary Trustee 1983-1992 Regarding the artist: "Topographical draughtsman and printmaker; son of Huguenot parents named Phillippe (he probably took name Chatelain later), worked and died in London in 1758 (not 1771 as stated by earlier authorities). Chatelain worked for notable London publishers, including John Rocque, Francis Vivares and Arthur Pond...

An original rare and extremely collectible first edition John James Audubon hand colored lithograph entitled "Long-billed Curlew", No. 71, Plate 355, from Audubon's "Birds of America...

This original first edition hand-colored lithograph entitled "Canada Goose" was produced by J. T. Bowen after a drawing by John James Audubon. It was published in Audubon's first oct...

"Pianta del Finestrone, Prospetto del finestrone con suoi ornamenti nel mezzo della naue maggiore per fianco nella Basilica di S. Gio. in Laterano" is an architectural engraving of an elevation of monumental windows with their associated columns and ornaments above an entrance to the Basilica of S. Gio. In Laterano in Rome, the Cathedral of the Most Holy Savior and of Saints John the Baptist and the Evangelist in the Lateran, also known as the Papal Archbasilica of Saint John in Lateran. It is the church of the Diocese of Rome which serves as the seat of the Roman Pontiff. The print was engraved by Alessandro Specchi (1668-1729), an engraver and architect, after a design by the Italian architect Francesco...

From publication The Birds of Great Britain, Systematically Arranged, Accurately Engraved, and Painted from Nature. Published 1793-1801 in London. Markings Watermark: 1794 J.Whatma...

This early 19th century etching entitled "Veduta di Piazza Navona sopra le rovine del Circo" was created by Jean Barbault (1718-1762) after a painting by...

A hand-colored copper plate engraving depicting "Calendula prolifera; Calendula lutea flore pleno; Calendula lute medioruffa" flowers from Basilius Besler's landmark work, Hortus Eys...

G. B. Piranesi in his fifties was interested in archaeology and studied in Southern Italy where he produced drawings of Greek architecture

[ Bird of Paradise] La Pie de paradise, vue par derriere , No.21, Paris 1801-1806 [Astrapia nigra]. Color-printed engraving with hand-coloring. French botanical and zoological illustrator Jacques Barraband (1767-1809) was known as one of the finest ornithological artists of his time .He is best known for his watercolors and engravings that were commissioned by François LeVaillant, French explorer, naturalist, zoological collector , noted ornithologist and author. Levaillant’s Histoire naturelle des perroquets (1801-05) and his Histoire naturelle des oiseaux de paradis (Birds of Paradise, 1801-06), both of which Barraband contributed to, are still considered some of the most beautiful bird books of all times because of their exceptional scientific accuracy, rich color and detail. The Astrapia nigra is a Bird of Paradise that inhabits the Vogelkop Peninsula of West Papua...

Artist: Elizabeth Blackwell (Scottish, 1707-1758) Title: "Cardiaca (Motherwart)" (Plate 171) Portfolio: Herbarium Blackwellianum Emendatum et Auctum Circa: 1750 Medium: Original Hand-Colored Engraving on wove paper Limited edition: Unknown Printer: Unknown Publisher: Johann Joseph Fleischmann and Christian de Launoy, Nuremberg, Germany Reference: Arnold Aboretum page 86; BLNH I, page 169; Cleveland 444; Great Flower Books...

William Lewin (1747–1795) was an English naturalist and illustrator. By 1776 he was earning a living as a pattern drawer, and by 1783 was describing himself as a painter. Lewin spec...

This is a framed Giovanni Battista Piranesi (1720-1778) etching entitled "Orthographia utriusque lateris arcuum ductus Aquae Virginis a specu principe ad Hadriani thermas, effossorum...

From publication The Birds of Great Britain, Systematically Arranged, Accurately Engraved, and Painted from Nature. Published 1793-1801 in London. Markings Watermark: 1794 J.Whatma...

This is a rare 18th Century hand-colored large folio-sized copperplate engraving entitled "Anas Crecca" (Eurasian Teal) by Cornelius Nozeman in volume II of his publication 'Nederlan...

François Vivares was known to have produced several copies of images after older masters, such as, in this case, Rembrandt van Rijn. In this set, Vivares reproduces "The Quacksalver" (1635, Bartsch 129), "Beggar man and beggar woman conversing" (1630, Bartsch 164), and "Beggar Seated Warming...

This map was printed from a copperplate engraving in 1746. The printed image size is 18.25 x 21.75 inches (46.3 x 55.2 cm) plus margins. An attractive double hemisphere map...

Print by Giovanni Giardini (1646-1721) for Disegni Diversi [Various Designs]. Originally published in 1714 in Prague and later reissued in 1750 in Ro...

A hand-colored portrait of Henry Prince of Wales, Son of James, engraved and etched by the Dutch master of portraits Jacobus Houbraken (1698-1780...

This is a very rare early 18th century old master religious themed engraving entitled "Les Mages...Trouverent l'Enfant avec Marie sa Mere, et se prosternant entere ils l'adorent Puis ouvrant leurs tresors ils tuy offrirent pour present de lor de l'encens et de la myrrhe" by S. Vale after Calmaret, published in Paris by Pierre Drevet (1663-1738). The scene depicts the Magi bowing before Jesus, who is held by his mother Mary, and bringing him gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh to demonstrate their adoration and respect. Winged cherubs fly overhead and a ray of light is focused on the spiritual couple. A cattle stall and buildings are in the background and a crown and scepter are dropped in the foreground, symbolically demonstrating that these nobles place Jesus above their titles and rank. Little is known about the artist Calmarat or the engraver S...

Etching from the series titled "A Harlots Progress" by William Hogarth. The series consists of six paintings and engravings. The story is about a woman named M. Hackabout who arrived in London and started working as a prostitute. The third plate is of her getting arrest for her choice in profession. The series is a satirical story that emphasizes the dangers of being a prostitute and the health risks that come from it. In 18th century engraving, the detail of the black mole on women and men's face is a symbol of the deadly venereal disease, syphilis. In this plate, Hackabout has already contracted the disease and that is why the black dot is visible on her forehead as well as her madam's. In 1828, William Innell Clement published Harlot's Progress in columns on a single page of his newspaper Bell's Life in London #330. The detail with the cross seen in earlier reproductions of the engraving. Dimensions without Frame: H 14.5 in x W 16.5 in. Artist Biography: William Hogarth ( 10 November 1697 – 26 October 1764) was an English painter, printmaker, pictorial satirist, social critic, and editorial cartoonist. His work ranged from realistic portraiture to comic strip-like series of pictures called "modern moral subjects", perhaps best known to be his moral series A Harlot's Progress, A Rake's Progress and Marriage A...