César de Cock, “Two Poplars by the Scie (Normandy)”, 1864

César de Cock (1823–1904)—Belgian painter and printmaker associated with the Barbizon School, student of Daubigny and Louis Français, and friends with Corot, Rousseau, Diaz and Troyon.

“Two Poplars by the Scie (Normandy)”, 1864.

Contextual Commentary:

Although this freely drawn etching is not explicitly described in Jean Adhémar’s 1949 Inventaire du Fonds Français après 1800 (vol. 5), the general biographical entry offered by Adhémar provides wonderful context for the artist: (translated) “Painter and engraver, born and died in Ghent, 1823–1904. He was first a musician, then under the influence of his brother Xavier, he painted and engraved; settled in France since his youth and working with his wife Julia Stigzelius, under the influence of the masters of Barbizon, he exhibited landscapes at the Salon, from 1857” (p. 59). Notably, the artist's historic transition from music to visual art was driven by his progressively failing hearing.

The idyllic scene captured in this print represents the Scie Valley in Normandy, specifically the landscape surrounding Longueville-sur-Scie where de Cock frequently worked. In this coastal region, poplars (peupliers)—visible here as the two tall, slender silhouettes breaking the distant horizon—are a defining feature of the flat meadows running alongside the riverbanks. These trees were traditionally planted throughout northern France to help stabilise marshy river soil and to serve as a reliable source of timber.

Technical Details & Condition:

Etching with delicate plate tone on fine cream laid paper with generously wide margins. The impression is richly inked, strong, crisp, and in near-pristine condition, being entirely free of tears, holes, folds, abrasions, or stains.

Dimensions:

• Sheet: 22.2 x 31.1 cm
• Platemark: 9.6 x 12.6 cm
• Image borderline: 8.1 x 12.2 cm

In-Plate Lettering:

• Below the image borderline: (lower right) “Cesar De Cock. 64”

References:

• Jean Adhémar, Inventaire du Fonds Français après 1800: CIDOINE–DAUMIER, Paris, Bibliothèque Nationale de France, Département des Estampes, 1949, vol. 5, p. 59 — Available via Bibliothèque Nationale de France (Gallica): https://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k5488526m/f71.item
• For a comparative print by the artist, see the British Museum: Inventory number 1866,0210.239 — https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/P_1866-0210-239
• For previously listed prints by de Cock on my blog, see: https://www.printsandprinciples.com/2024/12/cesar-de-cock-screen-of-trees-with.html  and https://www.printsandprinciples.com/2025/02/cesar-de-cock-forest-stream-with.html

Price & Shipping:

AU$267 (approximately US$186.13 / €165.95 / £140.85), including worldwide express shipping. Import duties and taxes (if any) are the buyer’s responsibility.

To acquire this sensitively executed etching exemplifying the rustic spirit of the Barbizon School and the mid-19th century Etching Revival, please contact oz_jim@printsandprinciples.com. Secure payment is handled via PayPal invoice for a smooth, protected transaction.

Karl Audran, “Saint Francis of Paola in Prayer”, c. 1625, after Charles Mellin

Karl Audran (also known as Charles Audran and Karolus Audran) (1594–1674)

“Saint Francis of Paola in Prayer”, circa 1625

Contextual Commentary:

The composition is based on an altarpiece by the Lorrainese painter Charles Mellin (c. 1600–1649), originally created for the Royal Convent of Trinità dei Monti in Rome. Karl Audran engraved this print in Rome, circa 1622–1630. The copperplate was later acquired and brought to Paris, where F. Muguet published it in 1671 to illustrate Father Antoine Dondé’s book, “Les figures et l’abrégé de la vie, de la mort et des miracles de Saint-François de Paul...”. This impression is from the earlier Roman edition and bears the inscription “Romæ Sup. prm.” (short for Superiorum permissu — “with the permission of the superiors/authorities”).

The eight-line poem below the image brings together key elements of St. Francis’s life. The first four-line column plays on the irony of a holy man seeking to escape fame by hiding in the dense forests of Rome and Italy, only for his spiritual “light” to shine through nonetheless. In translation: “Neither Paula nor the vast Gallic world can contain you; You shun the allure of the shady grove, Choosing instead to veil your light in darkness And hide your deeds within the forest’s shade.”

The second column refers to St. Francis of Paola’s founding of the Order of Minims, a mendicant order. Unlike the Franciscans (Friars Minor, or “lesser”), Francis wanted his followers to be the least of all human beings. In translation: “You are known above the stars, Father, while wishing everywhere To be the lesser, you love the name and the omen of the Minim [the Least]. Thus Francis wanders without stain, for it is seen That where he is the least, he is thereafter the greatest to God.”

Technical Details & Condition:

Engraving on fine laid paper. The sheet has been trimmed slightly unevenly around the image borderline and is professionally supported by an archival-quality washi paper backing sheet. The image bears a historical grid of faint pencil lines, undoubtedly added by an early hand to square and copy the composition. Aside from a minor loss at the left image edge, which has been professionally replenished, the sheet remains in good condition, free of holes, folds, and significant stains.

Dimensions:

• Sheet: 42.2 x 27.9 cm

In-Plate Lettering:

• On oval medallion: “HVMI / L […] I / TAS” (Humilitas — the motto of the Minim friars founded by St. Francis)
• Below the image: (lower left): Carol° Mellin Lotaring° In et pinx.”; (left of centre) “Romæ Sup. prm.”; (right) “Carol° Audran Paris. sculp.”
• Two columns of four lines of Latin below the image: “Quem non Paula capit; non Gallicus amplior Orbis / Illicis vmbrosa fonde Latere putat / Sed qui opus tantum tenebris involvere lumen: / Syluarumq: vmbris abdere facta Inuat: // Es notus super astra Pater, Dum quolibet optans / Esse minor, Minimi nomen, et omen amas / Sic sine Labe errat Franciscus, namque videtur / Jnde ubi minimus, maximus Inde Deo est”

References:

• IFF 340 (Roger-Armand Weigert “Inventaire du Fonds Français Graveurs du XVIIe: ALIX [Jean]–BOUDEAU [Jean]”, Paris, Bibliothèque Nationale de France, Département des Estampes, vol. 1, 1939, p. 215, cat. no. 340) — Available via Bibliothèque Nationale de France (Gallica): https://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k5489424r/f219.image
• Musée des Beaux Arts Nancy: Inventory number TH.99.15.1149 — https://collections-mba.nancy.fr/fr/notice/th-99-15-1149-saint-francois-de-paule-en-prieres-c39d39aa-0abc-4f56-aee2-d92dd0e828e9

Price & Shipping:

AU$308 (approximately US$213.98 / €191.15 / £161.86), including worldwide express shipping. Import duties and taxes (if any) are the buyer’s responsibility.

To acquire this large, sensitively executed, and very beautiful engraving, please contact oz_jim@printsandprinciples.com. Secure payment is handled via PayPal invoice for a smooth, protected transaction.

Benigno Bossi, “Head of a Young Woman Facing Left with Her hand to Chin”, circa 1760

Benigno Bossi (1727–1792)

“Head of a Young Woman Facing Right with Her Hand to Her Chin” (descriptive title only), circa 1760

Technical Details & Condition:

Etching on fine laid paper with partial watermark and generously wide margins.

This is plate 14 from the series of 40 plates (including the frontispiece/title page), “Raccolta di teste inventate, disegnate e incise da B. Bossi” (Collection of heads created, drawn, and engraved by Benigno Bossi), published by Gioachino Bettalli and C Cont.a of Capello (as inscribed on the title plate).

The impression is strong, crisp and faultless. Aside from faint age toning at the outer edges, the sheet is in near pristine condition with no tears, holes, folds, abrasions, or stains.

Dimensions:

• Sheet: 30.7 x 22.5 cm
• Platemark: 8.7 x 7.2 cm

In-Plate Lettering:

• Upper left: “Bossi. f.”
• Upper right: “14”

References:

• LeBlanc 64-103 (Charles Le Blanc, “Manuel de l'amateur d'estampes, contenant un dictionnaire des graveurs de toutes les nations,” vol. 1, 1854, Paris, P. Jannet, p. 183, cat. nos. 64–103 [From the suite of 40 heads and sketches])
• Institutional Reference: For an authoritative description of this print series and verification of the 40-plate suite, see the regional collection archives of Lombardy (Lombardia Beni Culturali), under entry record C0060-00400 — https://www.lombardiabeniculturali.it/stampe/schede/C0060-00400/

Price & Shipping:

AU$274 (approximately US$190.64 / €169.34 / £143.98), including worldwide express shipping. Import duties and taxes (if any) are the buyer’s responsibility.

To acquire this exceptionally beautiful and rare etching in superb (museum quality) condition, please contact oz_jim@printsandprinciples.com. Secure payment is handled via PayPal invoice for a smooth, protected transaction.