Alphonse Charles Masson’s engraving with etching, “Saint Francis of Assisi Kneeling in Prayer”, 1849, after Francisco de Zurbarán

Alphonse Charles Masson (aka Alphonse Masson) (1810/14­1898)

“Saint Francis of Assisi Kneeling in Prayer” (aka “Kneeling Monk”; “Moine Agenouillé” [Beraldi title]), 1849, after Francisco de Zurbarán’s (aka Francisco Zurbarán) (1598–1664) painting, “St Francis in Meditation”, originally exhibited in the Galerie Espagnole at the Louvre between 1838 to 1848, and now the National Gallery, London, published in Paris by the Chalcographie du Louvre (fl.1797–) and dry-stamped with the seal of the Louvre Chalcographie.

Engraving and etching on heavy cream wove paper with wide margins and the dry stamp of the Louvre Chalcographie.

Size: (sheet) 63.3 x 45.3 cm; (plate [soft impression]) 37.6? x 24.6? cm; (image borderline) 30.3.3 x 20.8 cm.

Inscribed in plate below the image borderline: “Zurbaran — Alp Masson.”

Dry-stamped with the seal of the Chalcographie du Louvre below the platemark at centre.

Beraldi 5 (Henri Beraldi 1889, “Les Graveurs du XIX^e Siècle: LAEMLEIN–MÉCOU”, Paris, Librairie L. Conquet, vol. IX, p. 247, cat. no. 5 [Estampes diverses: Moine agenouillé]).

The National Gallery (London) offers the following insights regarding Francisco de Zurbarán’s painting, “St Francis in Meditation”: “This is one of Zurbarán’s most austere and intensely spiritual works. Saint Francis is shown kneeling in fervent prayer, his clasped hands cradling a skull. Shadow obscures his face, giving us only a glimpse of his features. He wears the robe of the Franciscans, the religious order he founded in the thirteenth century; its patched and tattered appearance draws to mind the vow of poverty taken by all the order’s members.

Zurbarán shows the saint in a moment of profound contemplation, his head tilted upwards and mouth slightly open. The skull is a symbol of death and refers to Christ’s crucifixion. Meditation on death was particularly favoured by the Jesuits, and saints contemplating skulls are frequently found in seventeenth-century Italian and Spanish painting” (https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/francisco-de-zurbaran-saint-francis-in-meditation-1).

Condition: a richly inked and near faultless impression with generously wide margins in a near pristine condition with no tears, holes, folds, abrasions, significant stains or foxing.

I am selling this superb translation of Zurbarán’s painting into an engraving—note how Masson has captured the heavy folds of the monk’s long robe (habit) and hood compared to the thinner material of his upper tunic, and how the treatment of these materials contrast with the suggestion of stiffness in the rendering his cord belt (cincture)—for AU$308 (currently US$205.87/EUR186.27/GBP163.97 at the time of this listing, but please be aware that purchases are made in Australian dollars only as this is my currency) 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 absolutely stunning engraving (with etching), 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

Jacques Callot’s etching, “Condemnation of Christ”, c.1620

 

Jacques Callot (1592–1635)

“Condemnation of Christ” (aka “La Condamnation a Mort” [The Condemnation to Death]), c.1620 (1619–1624), a rare first state, lifetime impression, plate 5 from the series of seven plates, “La Grande Passion”.

Regarding the series, “La Grande Passion”, the Curator of the British Museum offers the following information: “… a series of seven plates depicting episodes of the Passion. The compositions were probably designed in Florence and engraved over several years, from 1619 to 1624, with the likely help of his workshop on some of the plates.

The set was meant to include more than just seven plates: there are 13 preparatory drawings, plus the Last Supper, which has been engraved but for which no sketch has been found. See cat. exhib. 'Jacques Callot' (Nancy, 1992) No.549-570” (https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/P_1861-0713-40).

Etching with engraving on laid paper trimmed with a fine margin around the platemark and backed with a support sheet.

Size: (sheet) 12.1 x 22.5 cm; (plate) 11.5 x 22 cm; (image borderline) 9.9 x 21.7 cm.

Inscribed in plate within the image borderline: (lower left corner) “Callot fec.”.

Lettered in plate in Latin below the image borderline: (centre) “Non lauat ille manus, sed Christi sanguine foedat,/ Nulla potest tantum lympha lauare Scelus” (He does not wash his hands, but rather defiles them with the blood of Christ/ No water can wash away the crime).

State i (of ii).

Lieure 283 (Jules Lieure 1989, “Jacques Callot: Catalogue Raisonné de l’Œuvre Gravé, San Francisco, Alan Wofsy Fine Arts, p. 114, cat. no. 283); Meaume 14.

The British Museum offers the following description of this print: “Condemnation of Christ: interior of classical building with, in the centre, Pilate seated on throne set in architectural niche, and washing his hands; on the left Christ taken away by soldiers; with inscription in Latin in lower margin. c.1619/24 Etching with some engraving” (https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/P_1861-0713-43).

Condition: a strong impression with thread margins. Beyond a restored fracture at the centre of the lower edge, the sheet is in an excellent condition with no significant stains and is laid onto a support of archival (millennium quality) washi paper providing wider margins.

I am selling this rare first state impression from Callot’s famous series, “La Grande Passion”—of interest to those who may not have noticed, the upper figure on the far left is using his fingers on his head to suggest horns, which is an Italian gesture for expressing bad luck (“jettatura”)—for AU$341 (currently US$227.92/EUR206.23/GBP181.54 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 remarkably fine etching that is a lifetime impression taken from the plate twenty years before Rembrandt painted his masterwork, “The Night Watch” (1642), 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 

Jan Luyken’s etching, “Moses Raised His Rod to Heaven and Egypt Became a Thunderous Land”, 1770

Jan Luyken (aka Johannes Luyken; Jan Luijken) (1649–1712)

“Moses Raised His Rod to Heaven and Egypt Became a Thunderous Land” (descriptive title only) (aka “Moses zyn Staf na den hemel verheffende, word Egiptenland met Donder, swaren Hagel en vijer, aan menschen en beesten, en al wat op den velden is geslagen, en't geboomte verbooken. Exo. 9: 24.25), a gatefold Illustration to the third volume of David and Willem Goeree’s (1635–1711) “Mosaize historie der Hebreeuwse kerke …” (Mosaic history of the Hebrew church …) inserted at page 154 (see this page and the publication online: https://archive.org/details/ned-kbn-all-00007382-001/page/n210/mode/2up), published in Amsterdam in 1700.

Etching on laid paper with the gatefold of publication flattened and backed with a support sheet.

Size: (sheet) 32.1 x 38.4 cm; (plate) 29.3 x 37.7 cm; (image borderline) 27.9 x 36.8 cm.

For those who may be unfamiliar with the illustrated passage from the Book of Exodus (Exodus 9), Biblegateway.com offers the following translation: “[verse] 23 When Moses lifted his staff toward the sky, the Lord sent thunder and hail, and lightning struck the earth. So the Lord made it hail on Egypt. 24 It hailed, and lightning flashed while it hailed. This was the worst storm in all the land of Egypt since it had become a nation. 25 All over Egypt the hail knocked down everything that was out in the open. It struck down people, animals, and every plant in the fields and destroyed every tree in the fields. 26 The only place it didn’t hail was the region of Goshen, where the Israelites lived.” (https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus+9&version=GW).

Lettered in plate above the image borderline: (right) “3 Deel P. 154.”

Lettered in plate in Dutch below the image borderline: “Moses zyn Staf na den hemel verheffende, word Egiptenland met Donder, swaren Hagel en vijer, aan menschen en beesten, en al wat op den velden is geslagen, en't geboomte verbooken. Exo. 9:/24.25.” (Moses raising up his rod to heaven, the land of Egypt was declared with thunder, hail, and fire, to men and beasts, and to all that was slain in the fields, and to the trees. Exo[dus] 9: 24.25.)

Van Eeghen 2600 (Pieter van Eeghen & Johan Philip van der Kellen 1905, “Het werk van Jan en Casper Luyken”, Amsterdam, Frederik Muller & Co., vol. 2, p. 485, cat. no. 2600).

Van Eeghen (1905) offers the following description of this print: (transl.) “Scene outside the city, where, as a result of the breaking elements, people and animals are killed or injured, trees and shrubs are destroyed and further destruction is caused. In the background on the left is the city, where Pharaoh watches under the shelter of the gate, while Moses and Aaron stand a little further forward.” (p. 485; see https://archive.org/details/hetwerkvanjanen01kellgoog/page/485/mode/1up). 

Condition: a strong and near faultless impression. The sheet is in a near pristine condition for its large size and considerable age with the publication gatefold flattened when the sheet was laid onto a support of archival (millennium quality) washi paper.

I am selling this visually arresting etching that is not only large, but it is also in a superb condition, for AU$322 (currently US$215.22/EUR194.74/GBP171.42 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 spectacular etching of explosive heavenly power evoked by Moses raising his staff, 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

Maximilien Vox’s woodcut, “Young Woman Reading”, c.1919

Maximilien Vox (aka Samuel William Théodore Monod) (1894–1974)—beyond Vox’s work as an illustrator, Vox is famous for his contribution to the history of typography (especially in terms of typographic classification).

“Young Woman Reading” (descriptive title only), c.1919, woodcut impression numbered 14 in an edition of 30 impressions hand-signed in pencil by the artist on a Passepartout card mount with a pencil-inscribed dedication (dated 1919) to Charles Miguet (aka Charles Joseph Miguet)—an important bibliophile who is famous for instigating projects for the Society of Original Wood Engraving (la Société de la Gravure sur Bois Originale) (aka S.G.B.O.) (fl.1911–1945); for example, the 1932 publication for which Vox contributed woodcut illustrations, “Chansons Populaires Françaises de 1870 à Nos Jours” (French Popular Songs from 1870 to Our Days) (see https://www.librairie-pinault.com/img/cms/Catalogues%20PDF/Juillet%202021/CATALOGUE%20Liste%20Juillet%202021.pdf); see also an interesting article about Charles Miguet’s background as an artist: http://www.maling-pottery.org.uk/04.pdf).

Woodcut on fine wove (Japan) paper mounted within a thin card window-mount (Passepartout) that is monogramed in the plate (upper left corner) and pencil-signed, numbered and dedicated on the mount.

Size: (Passepartout) 25.4 x 17.8 cm; (image borderline) 14 x 8.1 cm.

Condition: a strong and well-printed impression showing minor crinkling in the margins of the thin paper. The original Passepartout mount has minor age-toning towards the edges; otherwise, the mount assembly is in an excellent condition with no tears, holes, folds, abrasions or significant stains.

I am selling this rare double-signed (in plate and in pencil) woodcut with a remarkable dedication (beautifully inscribed in pencil) to one of the important and influential bibliophiles between WWI and WWII, for AU$219 (currently US$146.38/EUR132.44/GBP116.59 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 superb woodcut by an important historian in the rarefied world of the classification of typography, please contact me (oz_jim@printsandprinciples.com) and I will send you a PayPal invoice to make the payment easy.

Carl von Pechwell’s etching, “The Penitent Magdalene in the Grotto”, c.1770, after Pompeo Batoni

Carl von Pechwell (1742–1789)

“The Penitent Magdalene in the Grotto” (aka “Die Büssende Magdalena in der Grotte” [Nagler title]; “Die Magdalene in der Einöde” [The Magdalene in the Wasteland]; “Die Heilige Magdalena” [The Holy Magdalene]) c.1770, after a painting by Pompeo Batoni (1708–1787) in “la Gallerie de S. A. Electorale de Saxe” (as inscribed in plate), Dresden, with a dedication in French to “the serene reigning princes of the Holy Roman Empire, protectors of Christian morality” (“Aux Princes Serenissimes Regnans du Saint Empire Romain Protecteurs de la Morale Chretienne”).

Etching on chine collé on heavy laid paper with wide margins and backed with a support sheet.

Size: (sheet) 37.3 x 50 cm; (plate) 30 x 45.3 cm; (chine collé) 29.8 x 44.2 cm; (image borderline) 26 x 40.1 cm.

Lettered in plate below the image borderline: (left) “La Peinture est du Cheval^r: Battoni et se trouve/ dans la Gallerie de S. A. Electorale de Saxe.” (The Painting is by Chevalr: Battoni and is located/ in the Gallery of S. A. Electoral of Saxony); (centre) “Aux Princes Serenissimes Regnans du Saint Empire Romain Protecteurs de la Morale Chretienne.” (To the serene reigning princes of the Holy Roman Empire, protectors of Christian morality); (right) “Parleur très humble très devoue et très obeissant/ serviteur Charles de Pechwill. Graveur de LL. MM. Imp. ^les RR.Clp^r:” (Very humble speaker very devoted and very obedient/ servant Charles de Pechwill. LL engraver. MM. imp. the RR.Clpr:).

LeBlanc 1 (Charles Le Blanc 1888, “Manuel de l'amateur d'estampes: contenant le dictionnaire des graveurs de toutes les nations”, vol. 3, Paris, Emile Bouillon, p. 155, cat. no. 1); Nagler 9 (G.K. Nagler 1841, “Neues allgemeines Künstler-Lexicon oder Nachrichten von dem Leben und den Werken der Maler, Bildhauer, Kupferstecher, Formschneider, Lithographen, Zeichner, Medailleure, Elfenbeinarbeiter, etc.:Meglinger–Müller”, vol. 11, Munich, E A Fleischmann, p. 15, cat. no. 9).
Condition: a richly inked and well-printed impression with wide margins. There are restored tears in the margins and restored fracturing along the platemark with the whole sheet laid upon a support of archival (millennium quality) washi paper.

I am selling this magnificently strong and beautiful etching for AU$341 (currently US$227.92/EUR206.23/GBP181.54 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 large and seldom seen etching on the art market—interestingly, the British Museum, Rijksmuseum and the MET do not hold a copy of this rare print—please contact me (oz_jim@printsandprinciples.com) and I will send you a PayPal invoice to make the payment easy.