Jost Amman’s woodcut, “The Fowler”, 1568

Jost Amman (aka Jost Ammon) (1539–1591)

“The Fowler” (aka “Auceps. Der Vogler”), 1568, from the series of 133 woodcut illustrations to Hartmann Schopper’s (1542–c1595) “Panoplia Omnium illiberalium mechanicarum aut sedentariarum artium ...” (aka “Book of Trades”), published by  Sigmund Feierabend (aka Sigmund Feyerabend; Sigismund Feyrabend) (1528–1590) in 1568 in Frankfurt am Main.  

Jane S Peters ([ed]. TIB 20, Part 2 [1985]) offers the following translation of the lengthy title of the publication in which this woodcut features: “A Panoply of all practical, mechanical or sedentary trades which were ever devised by the ancients or by various men of our time, briefly and clearly set forth. This constitutes the first book of poems which is then made useful and pleasurable to read through a marvelously varied supply of newly invented topics and terms. Also included are the most elegant illustrations providing the reader with a vivid picture of the activity of all the artisans, the like of which has heretofore never been seen or published. By Hartmann Schopper of Nuremberg. Published in Frankfurt am Main, 1568.” (p. 667, cat. no. 8 [371]).

Woodcut on fine laid paper trimmed with a narrow margin around the image borderline and backed with a support sheet.

Size: (sheet) 8.3 x 6.5 cm; (image borderline) 7.9 x 6.1 cm.

TIB 20.8.102 (371) (Jane S Peters 1985, “The Illustrated Bartsch: German Masters of the Sixteenth Century”, vol. 20 [Part 2], New York, Abaris Books, p. 693, cat. no. 8.102 [ 371]); New Hollstein (German) 51.102.

The British Museum offers the following description of this print: “One of 133 woodcut book-illustrations, showing an open landscape with a huntsman, on his right side a dog, and on his left hand a falcon, across his shoulders a rifle, in the background a lake with waterfowl” (https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/P_1904-0206-103-101).

Condition: a richly inked and well-printed (near faultless) impression showing no sign of wear to the printing plate suggesting that this is a lifetime/early impression, trimmed with a narrow margin around the borderline and laid onto a support of archival (millennium quality) washi paper providing larger margins. The lower left margin corner is clipped otherwise the sheet is in an excellent condition.

I am selling this superb (museum quality) woodcut showing a hunter with his gun, dog and falcon for AU$288 in total (currently US$206.56/EUR194.35/GBP164.25 at the time of posting 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 marvellous impression—possibly a lifetime impression from 1568 based on the quality of the line showing no sign of wear to the printing plate—by one of the most famous of the old master printmakers, please contact me (oz_jim@printsandprinciples.com) and I will send you a PayPal invoice to make the payment easy.

Note that I would prefer to sell this print with Heinrich Knoefler’s wood engraving, “A Hunter Meeting Saint Wolfgang”, 1866, after Ludwig Seitz (see https://www.printsandprinciples.com/2022/04/heinrich-knoeflers-wood-engraving.html) for the total combined price for the two prints of AU$435 (currently US$311.80/EUR293.56/GBP248.01).

This print has been sold (along with the print by Knoefler)