Luigi Vanvitelli

Letter of the Alphabet L - Etching by Luigi Vanvitelli - 18th Century

Late 18th Century

Assassinat De Basseville à Rome is an original black and white etching realized by Pierre Gabriel Berthault, after Jacques François Joseph Swebach-Desfontaines in 1793. Title with caption on plate on the lower center: "Assassinat de Basseville, à Rome/ le 13 Janvier 1793, ou 23 Nivose An Ier de la République". Below the image on the lower margin, "Swebach Desfontaines onv. et del. / Berthault sculp." is etched on plate. This modern artwork is numbered "N. 76", because it is from the series Les Tableaux historiques de la Révolution française. As a matter of fact, Pierre-Gabriel Berthault is well-known for having engraved plates from this collection with the collaboration of the engraver Jean Duplessis-Bertaux. A work - hanging in the balance between news and history - with illustrations of salient or minimal events occurred during the French Revolution. As a celebration of the new ideals of brotherhood, justice, and equality, Les Tableaux immediately became a point of reference for journalism at the time. Of traditional cut, namely showing a view with many human figures, the engraving simplified the lines to be immediately readable for the general public. In our specific case, this original print represents the murder of Hugou de Bassville or Basseville (7 February, 1743 – 13 January, 1793), a French journalist and diplomatist, and protector of the radical Jacobins in Rome. In excellent conditions, except for a usual yellowing of the paper on the edges and a light trace of oxidations on the lower and right margins, beyond the marginal line of the matrix. Pierre-Gabriel Berthault (Saint-Maur-des-Fossés, 1737 - Paris, 1831) was a French master who made engravings from drawings by Jean-Claude Richard de Saint-Non (known as the Abbot of Saint-Non) and from paintings by Louis François Cassas. He depicted many views of Italy and created the collections Voyage à Naples and Voyage pittoresque de la Syrie, de la Palestine et de la basse-Egypte. Before the French Revolution, he was famous for being the author of the Vues intérieures de Paris and for tables with architectural elevations.

A beautiful reproduction of one of the most celebrated Piranesi's masterpieces, realized in a limited edition of a few hundreds in 1990s. The Trajan's Column is the last remaining n...

English Title: "The Famous Ercole’s undertaking in “Esperidi” Beautiful Artist's Proof, representing the first complex apparatus for firework built in occasion of the Feast of S. Pe...

Artist proof, printed on contemporary filigree paper, large margins, representing an antique marble vase , whose details are described in the ending note . The piece is dedicated to ...

By Giuseppe Vasi after Giovanni Piranesi: Etching and engraving with hand coloring in watercolor on laid paper with an E and R watermark, full margins. Minor...

c. 1654. Etching with engraving on thin laid paper with an early and large unidentified watermark with a sundial and a many-pointed star, and an unidentified collector's stamp in the...

A charming scene with romping dogs and spectators watching the cascading water play a trick on an unsuspecting man who is sprayed as he descends the steps, ...

Etching and engraving on handmade cream laid paper, 3 7/8 x 6 7/8 inches (97 x 173 mm), full margins. In good condition, consistent with age. Several small notations in pencil in t...