George Vertue

Thomas Willis, MD, 17th C. Pioneer of Neurology & Psychiatry: 18th C. Portrait

1742

This is a large framed very rare hand-colored copperplate mezzotint engraved portrait of William Pitt, the Elder, 1st Earl of Chatham by Edward Fisher, published in London in 1779 after a painting by Richard Brompton. Pitt is depicted attired in a flowing regal appearing cape, standing in an ornate room with his left hand outstretched over a serious of manuscripts and scrolls that are laying on a table or desk to his left. The table is covered by a beautiful oriental carpet. The manuscripts include the Magna Carta, a map of the colonies, including Long Island and Staten Island, and papers entitled "A Plan for the Reconciliation between Great Britain and the Colonies", "A Motion Made in 1775 for the Recall of Troops from Boston", "A Provisional Act for Settling the Troubles in America Offered to the House of Lords in 1775", and "It is doing Nothing to repeal a few Scraps of Paper or Pieces of Parchment called Acts of Parliament. But our Business is to repeal the Ill-Will and the Animosity unfortunately now subsisting between Great Britain and North America". This engraving is held by the British Museum and the British Royal Collection Trust. This large framed mezzotint engraving is presented in a brown wood frame with gold-colored beaded inner and outer trim, and a cream-colored French mat. The frame measures 31.63" high by 26.63" wide by 0.75" deep. There are three short tears along the right edge and mild creasing in the left upper, left lower and right lower corners. It is otherwise in very good condition. William Pitt (1708-1778) was a member of the British parliament from 1735 to 1761 and prime minister from 1766 to 1768. Pitt was an advocate for the American colonies leading up to the War of Independence. He called for an amiable relationship between Great Britain and the colonies and opposed the Stamp Act and military action in America. He advocated for a withdrawal of English troops from Boston in 1775 and the settling of troubles in America, as two of his manuscripts on the table outline. Pitt's colleague, Lord Shelburne (later the Marquess of Lansdowne) shared his sympathies and after Pitt's death, signed a peace treaty with the United States in 1782. The American city of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania is named for William Pitt, the Elder. The name originated when the conflict between the British and French over territorial claims in the Northeast were settled in 1758. General John Forbes and his British army, supported by the American colonial troops, expelled the French from Fort Duquesne (which had been constructed by the French in 1754). Forbes re-named the site for William Pitt the Elder, who at the time was a British statesman. The earliest known reference to the new name, Pittsburgh, is in a letter sent from General John Forbes to Pitt, dated November 27, 1758. Pitt's son, William Pitt, the Younger, like his father, also served as British Prime Minister. Edward Fisher (1730-1785) was born in Ireland in 1730. He was originally a hatter, but learned engraving in London. He became a member of the Incorporated Society of Artists in 1766, and exhibited there fourteen times between 1761 and 1776. He engraved more than sixty portraits. In addition to this portrait of William Pitt, Earl of Chatham, after Richard Brompton he engraved several portraits after Brompton, including George, Earl of Albemarle, as well as engraved portraits after paintings by Joshua Reynolds, including the Shakespearean actor David Garrick, Hugh, Earl of Northumberland, and Elizabeth, Countess of Northumberland and Laurence Sterne, and Hope Nursing Love, as well as Robert Brown, after Mason Chamberlin, Colley Cibber, after Jean-Baptiste van Loo, Christian VII of Denmark, after Nathaniel Dance, Simon, Earl Harcourt, after Hunter, Roger Long, after Benjamin Wilson...

This is an original 18th Century copper plate engraved portrait of Captain James Cook as a young man. It was engraved by J. Basire after a painting by William Hodges, published in London by W. Strahan and T. Cadell in the Strand in 1777 as the frontispiece to the official journal publication of Cook's 2nd voyage of discovery, "A voyage towards the South Pole, and round the World. Performed in His Majesty's ships the Resolution and Adventure, in the years 1772, 1773, 1774, and 1775". The journal was written by James Cook, Commander of the Resolution, which was the ship used for the voyage and William Hodges, who was the artist on board the ship. This famous image has been used in many articles and tributes to Captain Cook, including a Norfolk Island stamp celebrating his many accomplishments. This engraved head-and-shoulders portrait of Captain Cook is enclosed in an oval with the appearance of a stone border. Captain Cook is dressed in his naval dress uniform, with a topcoat over a lace shirt. The engraving is printed on watermarked laid, chain-linked paper. The sheet measures 11.5" high x 9" wide. There is some spotting, most prominently in the margins. The print is otherwise in excellent condition. Captain James Cook (1728-1779) was an English explorer, navigator, surveyor and cartographer, who dramatically changed what was known about the world through his three voyages of discovery in the 1770's. Cook's achievements are too numerous to include here, but for example, Cook charted much of the Pacific Ocean and discovered many island groups, including the Hawaiian islands, which he named the Sandwich Islands, in honor of the head of the British Admiralty and a patron of Cook's. Cook was the first European to explore the eastern coast of Australia, and he was the first to map the New Zealand coastline. He sailed farther south than any other explorer before him, disproving the belief that a huge land mass occupied the South Pole. He also explored the northwest coast of North America, including present day Alaska and adjacent portions of Russia. He proved that the Northwest Passage did not exist. Cook was an exceptional seaman, navigator and leader of men, which contributed to the success of his explorations, but also saved his ship and crew on many occasions when faced with challenges, such as storms in previously unexplored waters, like occurred in the Great Barrier Reef off the eastern coast of Australia. He is also the first to require his crew to eat citrus fruit which markedly reduced the incidence of survey, which had led to large scale illness and death during earlier ocean voyages. As outstanding as Cook's skills were, they are even more impressive since they were self-taught. Having grown up the son of a farmhand in Northern England he had only four years of formal schooling. He taught himself astronomy, mathematics and other disciplines which were helpful when he continued his education, first in the merchant marine and then in the British Navy. Cook's adventurous career came to a sudden and unfortunate end in 1779, when he was killed in a confrontation with Hawaiian natives...

Lasansky, Mauricio (American, 1914-2012. EL MOZO. Lasansky 188. Engraving, etching, soft ground, open-bite, drypoint and resist ground, 1966. Printed from three plates: a copper mast...

Beggar With A Wooden Leg is an engraving on ivory-colored paper realized by Charles Amand Durand after an etching by Rembrandt dated 1630. This wonderful piece of art belongs to a la...