Wenceslaus Hollar’s etching, “The Trojans’ First Meal in Latium”, c1654, after Francis Cleyn

Wenceslaus Hollar (aka Václav Hollar; Wenzel Hollar) (1607–1677)

“The Trojans’ First Meal in Latium”, c1654, after a drawing by Francis Cleyn (aka Francis Clein; Franz Clein) (1582–1658), published in 1654 in London as the illustration on page 372 to John Ogilby's “The Works of Publius Virgilius Maro: Translated, Adorned with Sculpture, and illustrated with Annotations” (see https://archive.org/details/mma_the_works_of_publius_virgilius_maro_translated_adorned_with_sculpture_and_354833 and https://www.christies.com/en/lot/lot-5698628).  

Etching with pale plate tone on fine laid paper with wide margins.

Size: (sheet) 42.3 x 27 cm; (plate) 29.5 x 19.5 cm; (image borderline) 25.3 x 19.2 cm.

Inscribed in plate within the image borderline: (lower left) “F Cleyn inv.” (and) “W. Hollar fecit”.

Lettered in plate below the image borderline: (five lines of Latin verse in two columns) “Æneas primique duces …// …consumimus, inquit Iulus,/ Æneid, L 7” (followed by a two-line Latin dedication to Henry Puckering) “Duo: Henroico Puckring … // … rito votiua.” (numbered at right) “280”.

Lifetime impression of state iii (of v) with the addition of the number “280” at lower right and before the addition of number “356” at upper right of the fourth state.

Pennington 315 iii (Richard Pennington 1982, “A Descriptive Catalogue of the Etched Work of Wenceslaus Hollar 1607–1677”, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, p. 47, cat. no. 315 [iii]); New Hollstein (German) 1378—the BM advises that the New Hollstein incorrectly state iv as state iii (see BM inv. no. Q,4.174).

The British Museum offers the following description of this print from state iv:

“Trojan warriors seated and kneeling on the ground in a clearing, having their first meal in Latium, seated on the ground in a clearing; Aeneas conversing with Ascanius in foreground at right; masts of ships seen [beyond] trees in background at left; coat of arms below image at centre; illustration to John Ogilby's 'The Works of Publius Virgilius Maro' (London: 1654, Virgil's 'Aeneis', Book VII, p.372); after Francis Cleyn …” (https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/P_Q-4-174).

Condition: a strong and well-printed (near faultless) impression with generously wide margins. There are a few thin areas (possibly naturally occurring within the paper) and a faded brown ink notation by an old hand at upper right, otherwise, the sheet is in a near pristine condition for its considerable age with no tears, stains or foxing.

I am selling this amazing illustration from the mid-1600s that is a marvellous example of the principle of visually “stacking” figures in a flattened pictorial space in order to show their activities, for AU$268 (currently US$193.95/EUR171.86/GBP144.26 at the time of this listing) including postage and handling to anywhere in the world, but not (of course) any import duties/taxes imposed by some countries.

If you are interested in purchasing this lifetime impression of a remarkable etching—note the stylistic leap from the mannered treatment of the foreground figures to the comparative realism of closely observed trees in the background—please contact me (oz_jim@printsandprinciples.com) and I will send you a PayPal invoice to make the payment easy.

This print has been sold