Johann Elias Ridinger, “The Age of the Noble Stag”, c. 1721

Johann Elias Ridinger (aka Johann Elias Riedinger) (1698–1767)

“The Age of the Noble Stag”, or “Des Edlen Hirschen Alter” (as titled in the plate), published in 1721

Technical Details & Condition:

Etching with engraving on fine laid paper, trimmed with a margin around the platemark on the top and sides, and trimmed along the platemark on the lower edge. The sheet has been professionally supported on tissue-thin archival (Kozo) washi paper.

This is the second plate in the series “Der Fürsten Jagd-Lust” (The Prince's Hunting Pleasure). Described by Thienemann (1856), the series provides: “Complete and thorough descriptions of the princely pleasures of hunting, or noble hunting, as they are presented according to the true nature and proper use of all the necessary equipment, according to the type and manner of each animal, and especially according to the customary hunting terminology, clearly illustrated and drawn from life” (p. 7). This particular plate is very rare and produced in a smaller format than Ridinger’s later prints. It is understood that Ridinger enlarged the size of his etchings after issuing this and the other seven plates from his initial series once he established a solid market for his work.

Note: The letters “A.V.” inscribed in the publication details on this plate do not refer to a publisher (often fictitiously named “August Vindel” or “Aug. Vindel”). Instead, “A.V.” is an abbreviation of “Augusta Vindelicorum”—the Latin name for Augsburg.

The impression is strong and well-printed, though the sheet exhibits signs of handling and its age, including minor marks, fractures, and thin areas.

Dimensions:

• Sheet: 31.7 x 26 cm
• Platemark: 30.5 x 23.5 cm
• Image borderline: 24.9 x 22.4 cm

In-Plate Lettering (below the image borderline):

• Left: “I. El. Ridinger inv. pinx. sc. et exc. A.V”
• Centre (in German and French): “Des Edlen Hirschen Alter. / Der Edle Hirsch hat Gehörne oder Geweihe [...] des Hirsches unsere Läüsste. / L'áge et les qualite du Cerf / On reconnoit l'áge du cerf [...] de tous les cors qu'il peut porter.”
• Right: “avec privil. de Sa M. Imper.”

References:

• Thienemann 14 (Georg Thienemann, Leben und Wirken des ... Thiermalers und Kupferstechers Johann Elias Ridinger, mit ... Verzeichniss seiner Kupferstiche, Schwarzkunstblätter, 1856, Leipzig, Rudolph Weigel, p. 9, cat. no. 14) See: https://archive.org/details/lebenundwirkende00thie/page/n45/mode/2up
• Albertina Museum: https://sammlungenonline.albertina.at/objects/402375/des-edlen-hirschen-alter
• Museum of Fine Arts Ghent (MSK): https://mskgent.be/collection/work/data/2013-GP  

Price & Shipping:

AU$239 (approx. US$168.79 / €143.91 / £125.39), including worldwide express shipping. Import duties and taxes (if any) are the buyer’s responsibility.

To acquire this rare and early etching by Ridinger, along with its detailed description of the attributes of deer as they mature—for example, young deer have horns called “clubtails,” with a curly ring at the horn base called the “rose” or “pearl,” while mature stags develop antlers that are “erupting” at the base and may have eighteen or more tips (fascinating reading!)—please contact me at oz_jim@printsandprinciples.com. I am happy to provide a secure PayPal invoice for a seamless transaction.

Alfred Brunet-Debaines, “Ruines du Château de Tancarville”, 1866

Alfred Brunet-Debaines (also known as Alfred-Louis Brunet-Debaines) (1845–1939)

“Ruines du Château de Tancarville” (Ruins of Tancarville Castle), 1866

Technical Details & Condition:

Etching with plate tone on fine buff laid paper with wide margins. This print is plate 230 from the series “Eaux-Fortes Modernes” [Modern Etchings], published in Paris in 1866 by Cadart & Luquet (Alfred Cadart and Jules Luquet) (active from 1863 to 1867), for the Société des Aquafortistes (Society of Etchers) (fl. 1862–1867). The print bears the publisher’s blind-stamp at the lower centre in the margin: “L. CADART & LUQUET / ÉDITURE / 79 R. RICHELIEU”, and was printed by Auguste Delâtre (1822–1907).

This is a strong, well-printed impression—near faultless—with generously wide margins. The sheet is in near-pristine condition, free of tears, holes, folds, abrasions, stains, or signs of handling.

Dimensions:

• Sheet: 52.2 x 33.5 cm
• Platemark: 31.5 x 23 cm
• Oval Image borderline: 24.5 x 18.4 cm

In-Plate Lettering:

• Upper right: “230.”
• Within the oval border at lower right: “A. Brunet Debaines”
• Lower left: “A. Brunet Debaines sculp.”
• Lower centre: “RUINES DU CHÂTEAU DE TANCARVILLE. / (Seine Inférieure.) / Paris, Publié par CADART & LUQUET, Editeurs. 79 Rue Richelieu.”
• Lower right: “Imp. Delâtre, Rue St. Jacques, 303, Paris.”

References:

• IFF 2 (Jean Laren & Jean Adhémar, Inventaire du Fonds Français après 1800: BOCQVIN–BYON, 1942, Paris, Bibliothèque Nationale de France, Département des Estampes, vol. 3, p. 480, cat. no. 2)
• Beraldi 5 (Henri Beraldi, Les Graveurs du Dix-Neuvième Siècle: BRASCASSAT– CHÉRET, 1886, vol. IV, Paris, Librairie L. Conquet, p. 22, cat. no. 5)
• National Gallery of Australia (NGA): https://searchthecollection.nga.gov.au/object/35023
• British Museum: https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/P_1866-1110-1412

Price & Shipping:

AU$232 (approx. US$163.84 / €139.69 / £121.72), including worldwide express shipping. Import duties and taxes (if any) are the buyer’s responsibility.

To acquire this sublimely romantic portrayal of the 11th-century castle near Tancarville in Seine-Maritime, Normandy, France—where the oval (ovato tondo) format lends a poetic, possibly even melancholic, mood—please contact me at oz_jim@printsandprinciples.com. I am happy to provide a secure PayPal invoice for a seamless transaction.

Charles Daubigny, “Parc à Mouton, le Matin”, 1862

Charles Daubigny (aka Charles François Daubigny) (1817–1878)

“Parc à Mouton, le Matin”, or “The Large Sheepfold”, 1862

Technical Details & Condition:

Etching on heavy cream wove paper, with generously wide margins and deckle edges on all sides. This large etching marks Daubigny’s debut publication with Alfred Cadart (1828–1875) and serves as a definitive example of the “new taste for realism” identified by Michel Melot (1978, p. 279) at the dawn of the 1860s. Indeed, with its richly inked and deeply bitten lines, the sheer boldness of this execution was instrumental in defining the aesthetic path for the ambitious, large-scale prints subsequently issued by Cadart for the Société des Aquafortistes.

This impression is from the final state (of four), after the removal of the publisher (Cadart & Chevalier) and printer (Auguste Delâtre) addresses.

A superbly strong, well-printed, and nearly faultless impression. Aside from a few minor marks in the margins and slight instances of tonal unevenness visible when held to the light, the sheet remains in excellent condition for its size and age.

Dimensions:

• Sheet: 42.5 x 61.7 cm
• Platemark: 22 x 38 cm
• Image borderline: 18.5 x 34.7 cm

Lettering on Plate (below the image border):

• Left: “Daubigny pinx^t. & sculp^t.”
• Centre: “PARC À MOUTON, LE MATIN.”

References:

• Melot D 95 (Michel Melot, Graphic Art of the Pre-Impressionists, 1978, New York, Harry N. Abrams, p. 279, cat. no. D 95)
• Rijksmuseum: https://id.rijksmuseum.nl/200182019
• British Museum: https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/P_1864-1008-210

Price & Shipping:

AU$306 (approx. US$216.07 / €184.88/ £160.97), including worldwide express shipping. Import duties and taxes (if any) are the buyer’s responsibility.

To acquire this pivotal work from the "Etching Revival"—notable for its luminous, painterly rendering and direct plein air observation—please contact me at oz_jim@printsandprinciples.com. I am happy to provide a secure PayPal invoice for a seamless transaction.

This print has been sold 

Claudine Bouzonnet Stella, “Abduction of Christ”, c. 1694

Claudine Bouzonnet Stella (also known as Claudia Bouzonnet-Stella) (1636–1697)
“Abduction of Christ”, c. 1694 (1690–1697)

Technical Details & Condition:
Engraving with etching on heavy buff laid paper, with deckle edges on three sides, and wide margins as issued. This is plate 10 from the series of 13—or arguably 14—plates (see BM inv. U,7.37), “Life and Passion of Christ” (La Vie et la Passion du Christ, or Het leven en lijden van Christus), published in Paris with privilege from Louis XIV, after the intermediary design by Jacques Stella (1596–1657), and a painting of the same composition, previously attributed to Nicolas Poussin (1594–1665).

This is a richly inked, well-printed, and nearly faultless impression. Aside from minor marks and small tears along the edges, the sheet remains in excellent condition for its large size and age.

Dimensions:
• Sheet: 59.7 x 43.4 cm
• Platemark: 46.4 x 35.2 cm
• Image borderline: 43.8 x 34.5 cm

Lettering on Plate (below the image border):

• Left: “N. Poussin pinx.”
• Right: “Claudia Stella Sculp. / 10.”

References:

• British Museum: https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/P_U-7-46
• Rijksmuseum: https://id.rijksmuseum.nl/200259037
• See the Curator of the British Museum’s comments about the series in which this print features: https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/P_U-7-37
• Anthony Blunt, “Jacques Stella, the De Masso family and falsifications of Poussin,” Burlington Magazine, vol. CXVI, December 1974, pp. 744–749.
• LeBlanc 7 (Charles Le Blanc, 1856), “Manuel de l'amateur d'estampes, contenant un dictionnaire des graveurs de toutes les nations,” vol. 3, p. 589, cat. no. 7)
• Nagler 6 (G.K. Nagler, 1832–52), “Neues allgemeines Künstler-Lexicon,” vol. 17, p. 308, cat. no. 6)

Price & Shipping:
AU$314 (approximately US$220.99 / €189.36 / £164.94), including worldwide express shipping. Import duties and taxes are the buyer’s responsibility.

If you are interested in acquiring this exceptional and large engraving with etching—created by one of the few historically documented female printmakers from the late Renaissance, exemplifying the period style of Mannerism—please contact me at oz_jim@printsandprinciples.com. I am happy to provide a secure PayPal invoice for a seamless purchase.

This print has been sold