Herman van Swanevelt, “Balaam and the Ass”, c. 1635

Herman van Swanevelt (aka Herman Swaneveld) (1603–1655)

“Balaam and the Ass” (TIB title) (aka “Balaam”; “Bileam en de ezel met de engel” [Balaam and the donkey with the angel]), c. 1635 (1629–1641), from the series, “Old Testament Representations” (“Oudtestamentische voorstellingen”), published in Paris by Pierre Mariette I (1596–1657) with royal privilege from Louis XIV (King of France). 

Etching on laid paper (grape watermark [French]) with reasonably wide margins.

Size: (sheet) 27.7 x 34.8 cm; (plate); 25.3 x 32 cm; (image borderline) 22.7 x 31.2 cm.

Hand-inscribed numbers in ink: (upper right corner) “40”; (lower right corner) “2”.

Lettered in plate within the image borderline: (upper right): “H Swaneûelt Fecit Rom.”.

Lettered in plate below the image borderline: (left) “Auec Priuil du Roy”; (centre) “A Paris chez Pierre Mariette Rue S^t Iacques a lésperance.”

State v (of viii) showing the publication details for Pierre Mariette before they were changed with publication details for Nicolas Jean Baptiste de Poilly in the sixth state.

TIB 2.111 (Mark Carter Leach & Peter Morse [eds.] 1978, “The Illustrated Bartsch: Netherlandish Artists”, vol. 2, Abaris Books, New York, p. 315); Hollstein Dutch 5

The Rijksmuseum offers the following description of this print: (transl.) “In a hilly landscape with trees, Balaam is depicted in the left foreground, seated on a recoiling donkey. In his right hand, he holds a sword, and before him stands an angel drawing a sword from its sheath” (https://id.rijksmuseum.nl/200261014).

See also the description of this print offered by the British Museum: https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/P_Sheepshanks-2299.

Condition: a strong and well-printed impression with good margins (approx. 1.5 cm). Beyond an area of thinness in the margin at upper right and partial erased pencil notations along the lower margin, the sheet is in an excellent condition with no significant stains or other issues.

Price & Shipping: AU$394 (approx. US$257.53/ €222.84/ £195.59), including worldwide express shipping. Import duties are the buyer’s responsibility.

If you are interested in purchasing this rare and superb 17th-century impression of a beautiful etching by one of the foremost Dutch masters of the Baroque era—highlighting the luminous quality characteristic of the artist’s work and the dramatic interaction between Balaam and the angel, emphasised by a burst of light surrounding them—please contact me at oz_jim@printsandprinciples.com. I will gladly provide a secure and convenient PayPal invoice for your purchase.

This print has been sold 

Isidore Laurent Deroy, “Récolte du Café” (Coffee Harvest), 1835, after Johann Moritz Rugendas

Isidore Laurent Deroy (aka Deroi; Laurent Deroy) (1797–1886)
“Récolte du Café” (Coffee Harvest), 1835, after a drawing by Johann Moritz Rugendas (1802–1858). Printed by Godefroy Engelmann I (1788–1839) and published by Engelmann, Graf, Coindet & Co in Paris as plate 8 to Johann Moritz Rugendas’ “Voyage Pittoresque dans le Brésil” (Picturesque Voyage in Brazil), part of the fourth issue (division), “Sitten und Gebräuche Neger” (Customs and Tradition of the Negroes).

This scene, rooted in Rugendas’ sketches from his nearly three-year journey across Brazil—culminating in the publication of the four-section/division, “Voyage Pittoresque dans le Brésil”, between 1826 and 1835—captures a vivid Romantic European perspective on life in nineteenth-century Latin America. Beyond its beauty, this lithograph subtly advocates against slavery. Through its visual and contextual narratives, it challenges the dehumanisation inherent in the institution, inviting reflection on themes of freedom, dignity, and social justice.

An online view of the publication and the context of this illustration can be found on Archive.org: https://archive.org/details/gri_33125012637993/page/n397/mode/2up.

Lithograph on wove paper with small margins around the image borderline and writing edge.

Size: (sheet) 28.8 x 33.9 cm; (image borderline) 24.6 x 31 cm.

Lettered in plate above the image borderline: (left) “4^e. Div.”; (right) “Pl. 8.”

Lettered in plate below the image borderline: (left) “Dess: d'ap: nat: par Rugendas.”; (centre) “Lith: de Engelmann, rue du faub: ^g Montmartre N^o. 6 a Paris./ RÉCOLTE DU CAFÉ.”; (right) Deroi del:”.

Teuscher 1106 (Andrea Teuscher 1998, “Die Künstler familie Rugendas 1666–1858: Werkverzeichnis zur Druckgraphik”, Augsburg, Wißner, p. 278, cat. no. 1106).

Condition: a strong and well-printed impression with small margins. There are pin holes and small closed tears in the upper margins, otherwise the sheet is in a good condition with no significant stains.

Price & Shipping: AU$374 (approx. US$244.24/ €211.22/ £185.72), including worldwide express shipping. Import duties are the buyer’s responsibility.

If you are interested in purchasing this historically significant lithograph depicting a rare view of nineteenth-century life on a coffee plantation at harvest time in the Tijuca Forest outside Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, please contact me at oz_jim@printsandprinciples.com. I will gladly send you a PayPal invoice for a secure and convenient transaction.

Jacques Callot, “L'Hospice”, 1617–1620

Jacques Callot (1592–1635)

“L'Hospice” (The Almshouse—an institution offering accommodation and care for the poor), 1617–1620, a strong lifetime impression of the first state (of two), from the series, “Les Caprices” (Series B, “The Nancy Set”), dedicated to Lorenzo de' Medici (1599–1648) (see the description of this print offered by the MET: https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/418077).

Etching on fine laid paper with narrow margins around the platemark.

Size: (sheet) 5.7 x 8.3 cm; (platemark) 5.5 x 8 cm; (image borderline) 5.4 x 7.9 cm.

State i (of ii) from the second plate before the addition of the plate number “36” at the lower right corner of state ii. Note that the first plate/version of this print (Lieure 251) features the cane supporting the elderly woman in the centre of the scene with a single line whereas in this, the second plate, the cane is rendered with two lines. Moreover, the figures shown on the far left are not cropped in the first plate.

Lieure 465 (Jules Lieure 1989, “Jacques Callot: Catalogue Raisonné de l’Œuvre Gravé”, San Francisco, Alan Wofsy, vol 1 [text], p. 98, cat. nos. 251, 465 [B] 1^er Etat).

The Art Institute Chicago offers a description of this print and the following explanation of the series, “Les Caprices”, in which it features: “In the 17th century, the word capriccio generally indicated a musical composition that thwarted listeners’ expectations with sudden changes in tempo, rhythm, or structure that appeared to be made according to the performer’s whim, or caprice. Jacques Callot borrowed the term to describe a series of etchings with a wide variety of diverting subjects including peasants, architectural sites, military [manoeuvres], and musicians. Among other motifs, he depicted two pairs of dancers frolicking and playing musical instruments and a shepherd playing a flute” (https://www.artic.edu/artworks/131528/the-home-from-the-caprices).

Condition: a strong and well-printed impression with narrow margins. The sheet is in an excellent condition, free from tears, holes, folds, abrasions, or stains.

Price & Shipping: AU$280 (approx. US$181.89 / €157.21 / £138.20), including worldwide express shipping. Import duties are the buyer’s responsibility.

If you are interested in acquiring this rare first-state, lifetime impression of a museum-quality etching by one of the master printmakers of the 17th century, Jacques Callot, please contact me at oz_jim@printsandprinciples.com. I will gladly provide a PayPal invoice to ensure a simple and secure payment process.

This print has been sold

Maxime Lalanne, “Vue de la Seine, Arc de Triomphe”, before 1863

Maxime Lalanne (aka François Antoine Maxime Lalanne) (1827–1886)

“Vue de la Seine, Arc de Triomphe” (Villet title) (aka “Vue de Paris, Quai Voltaire” [Gutekunst title]), before 1863. This impression is signed in ink at lower left, possibly by the printer with the note “3^eme Epreuve …”, suggesting that this is the third test/proof.

Interestingly, I understand that this etching was the artist’s first attempt at etching and was unpublished (see Villet's (2010) translation of Lalanne’s annotation of the first state proof held by the New York Public Library [n.p., Villet cat. no. 198; https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/c2c7a650-c612-012f-6085-58d385a7bc34]).

Etching printed in warm black ink on heavy wove paper, with a signed, hand-inscribed inscription in brown ink (possibly by the printer) at lower left.

Size: (sheet) 30.1 x 46.5 cm; (platemark) 24 x 31.8 cm; (image borderline) 19.7 x 29.2 cm.

Inscribed in brown ink below the image borderline: (lower left) “3^eme Epreuve [avant la Eme?]/ A. [Gavay?]”

State ii (of ii) with vertical reflections added to the river at right.

Villet 198 (Jeffrey M Villet 2010, “The Complete Prints of Maxime Lalanne”, Washington, D.C., art@mone fine prints, n. p., cat. no. 198 II).

Condition: a richly inked and well-printed impression with wide margins. Beyond a remnant of mounting verso, the sheet is in an excellent (near pristine) condition free from tears, holes, folds, abrasions, or stains.

Price & Shipping: AU$283 (approx. US$183.84 / €158.89 / £139.69), including worldwide express shipping. Import duties are the buyer’s responsibility.

If you are interested in purchasing this exceptionally rare proof impression of an etching—potentially the first etching attempt by the renowned French artist Maxime Lalanne—please note that the hand-signed impression bears an ink signature. While I cannot definitively confirm the signature's attribution, my reading of the annotation suggests it may be that of the printer. For inquiries or to purchase, please contact me at oz_jim@printsandprinciples.com. I will then send you a PayPal invoice for a secure and convenient transaction.

This print has been sold