We will auction over 50 very morbid and some very rare antique art prints!
These are very old original prints ranging in age from the early 16th century to the early 20th century, all very dark subject matter!
Each print has been framed in antique frames and are ready for hanging.
So please join us, this will be a cash and carry, live auction held at Skull and Bones Gallery on Sunday, November 4th.
Preview is at 3:00 pm and the auction will commence at 5:00 pm.
Location:
Skull and Bones Gallery
2-1767 Portage Ave. (2nd Floor), Winnipeg.
call 204 889 3943 for inquiries.
Here is a complete list of the prints to be auctioned and some information about them...
Dance of Death and Other Morbid Curiosities, Antique Print Auction
November 4th, 2012
Presented by Skull and Bones Gallery Auctioneer: Kurt Wiscombe
1- Lion Tamer Ellen Bright Being Mauled to Death by a Tiger in 1851. Original steel plate engraving Printed in 1852. From a German magazine published in 1852.
2- Gustave Dore, Satan Resting On The Mountain, leaf from Milton's Paradise Lost and Paradise Regained, original woodcut printed in 1895.
About The Artist: Gustave Doré was an Alsacian artist who specialized in book illustrations. Born in Strasbourg, France, on January 6, 1832, he began his artistic career in Paris when he was only 15 years old. His drawings and illustrations were groundbreaking and very popular, although he never won the acclaim of the artistic elite in France. In his later years, he spent much time in London, where he also opened a very popular gallery. He died on January 23, 1883, at the age of 51.
3- Dance of Death - “The Empress”. Extremely rare Dance of Death print by the Swiss artist Jacques-Antony Chovin after Merian. Hand coloured copper engraving printed and coloured in 1820, in Switzerland.
Death to The Empress
I dance before you, Mrs. Empress,
Dance after, the dance is mine.
Your courtiers have left you,
Death has here sneaked up on you too.
The Empress.
My proud body had much pleasure.
I lived as an emperor's wife.
Now I must come to this dance.
All spirits and joy have been taken from me.
The Dance of Death from Basel was in particular made famous through the copperplates that Matthäus Merian created 1616-1649. Merian's copperplates along with later impressions made by Chovin, Beck and Felix Schneider were published in editions through several centuries and made Basel's dance of death world famous throughout Europe.
Matthäus Merian is considered to be the person who has made the most complete and reliable representation of the dance of death in Basel.
4- Ostrich Skeleton, engraving from “Physica Sacra” (Kupfer-Tafeln zu der Physica Sacra, Augsburg: Pfeffel , 1731), By Johann Jakob Scheuchzer. Printed in 1731.
This original copper engraving is from the monumental work by the palaeontologist Johann Jakob Scheuchzer (Aug.2, 1672- June 23, 1733), who believed in the literal meaning of the Bible. For instance, he believed that the Great Flood happened and was convinced that he had in his fossil collection the remains of a human victim who had perished in that Flood. Scheuchzer published this work, attempting to illustrate and help to explain the entire Bible based on the latest state of scientific knowledge, which turned out to be one of the most expensive Bible productions ever. The engraver signed the engraving and there are many signatories, showing that there was a large group of artists and artisans that worked on this wonderful undertaking.
5- "The Voice of the Tocsin" by A. Maignan, engraved by Gebbie & Husson printed in 1888.
A copy of this print was displayed at the 1889 Paris World Exhibition, which was a time of celebration and remembrance of the French Revolution. A tocsin is an alarm bell.
Alarm, dismay and frantic commotion are the characteristics of this great painting. Ruin and desolation are in the air, and you fancy you can hear the tumult of clang for fire or fury issuing from the mouth of the great bronze bell which swings in its maddening reverberations. The artist, with a weirdness of effect which proclaims him a poet with an imagination equal to Dante, has peopled rope and rim and tongue with elfin figures of grim, devilish energy and activity in a perfect whirl of sympathy with the tumult, and you might imagine a trumpet tongue proclaiming in thunder tones: ''Let slip the dogs of war.''
Had the French artist gone for his title to Shakespeare, he might have labelled this picture with an appropriate motto: "The harsh and "boisterous tongue of war."
The tricolor torn and given to the breeze, the smoke and flame tell of the demon of destruction, and the clouded air is charged with death and rapine and murder. We heard a worthy New Yorker say when he beheld this picture in the Paris Exposition: "I feel like running to a fire somewhere."
Albert Maignan was born at Beaumont in 1847; studied under Luminais; received his first medal in 1874, another in 1876 and 1879; his painting of Dante Encountering Mathilde received the honour of the Luxembourg in 1881. He received a gold medal at the Paris Exposition, 1889.
6- Adolf Hering, “Der Tod und das Madchen” (Death and the Maiden), Antique Postcard.
7- Rare hand coloured copper plate engraving printed in 1799. From a rare edition of “Histoire Naturelle, Generele et Particuliere” by George- Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon, Published in Paris, By DuFart.
8- “Death & The Woodcutter” by Gustav Dore, leaf from Fontaines Fables printed in 1870.
9- Dance of Death - “The Empress”, by Wenceslaus Hollar, Printed in 1804. Based on Holbein’s Dance of Death.
Ye who walk forth in pomp superb,
Within brief space to Death must bow;
As bends beneath the tread the herb,
Ye also must be trodden low.
10- Dance of Death - “The Duchess”, by D. Deuchar, , printed in 1803. Based on Holbein’s Dance of Death.
Thou ne’er shalt leave that bed of down,
On which thou art about to lie.
Death round thee hath his meshes thrown,
And, vain one! thou must surely die.
11- Original page from an 1871 issue of the UK weekly newspaper, The Graphic.
In 1871 there was conflict in Paris between a government known as the Paris Commune and loyalist Versailles troops, these troops and members of the national guard went around and burnt down many buildings in Paris. As part of a propaganda campaign the powers that be at the time came up with Les Pétroleuses, who, according to rumours at the time were a group of lower class women who went around using petroleum (molotov cocktails) to burn down the buildings in Paris. It turned out later that this was a completely made up story, there were no Pétroleuses, and no women were ever convicted of burning down buildings during the uprising.
This print survives as an original piece of that propaganda.
12- “Gods Acre” Steel Plate Engraving by Miss E. Osborne and H. Bourne printed in the 1870’s.
13- Antique Medical Print from “Dictionnaire Histoire Naturelle” by Charles d’Orbigny (1802-1857). Hand coloured engraving printed in 1849.
Charles d’Orbigny was a French naturalist who made major contributions in many areas, including zoology, malacology, palaeontology, geology, archaeology and anthropology. D'Orbigny travelled on a mission for the Paris Museum, in South America between 1826 and 1833, and returned to France with an enormous collection of more than 10,000 natural history specimens. He described part of his findings in La Relation du Voyage dans l'Amérique Méridionale pendant les annés 1826 à 1833. His contemporary, Charles Darwin called this book "one of the great monuments of science in the 19th century". In 1853 he became professor of palaeontology at the Paris Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, his Dictionnaire Universel d’Histoire Naturelle published in 1849 by Renard & Martinet, Paris is considered by many experts to be the finest and best illustrated natural history work of the era.
14- Rowlandson’s English Dance of Death. Printed in 1903 based on an early 1800’s aquatint by Rowlandson.
“It is in vain that you decide...Death claims you as his destined bride”
15- Original woodcut from “Icones Historiarum Veteris Testamentihans”. Shadrach, Meshach cast into the fire, from a suite of woodcuts designed by Hans Holbein the younger (1497-1543), printed in 1525.
The engraver for this series is Hans Lutzenburger (died 1526), a German engraver probably from Augsburg who was a citizen of Basel in 1505 and member of the academy of painters from Basel in 1508.
Hans Holbein the Younger (1497-1543) - German School
He was a German artist and printmaker who worked in a Northern Renaissance style. He is best known for his numerous portraits and his woodcut series of the Dance of Death. Holbein was born in Augsburg, Bavaria and learned painting from his father Hans Holbein the Elder. Later he went with his brother Ambrosius Holbein to Basel where he met many scholars, among them the Dutch humanist Erasmus. Holbein was asked by Erasmus to illustrate his satires. He also illustrated other books, and contributed to Martin Luther's translation of the Bible. Like his father, he designed stained glass windows and painted portraits.
This work, together with his Dance of Death is counted among his major achievements in woodcut series.
16- Greenwood Cemetery- Brooklyn, NY. by Rudolf Cronau, woodcut from an art journal printed in 1881.
17- “The Bathos”, From the Original of design by William Hogarth. Very fine, steel engraving printed circa 1850. Surreal image of Satan at the end of the world!
18- “Death of Lucretia”, Leaf from Galerie du Palais Royal by Couche & Builliard, Paris. Printed in 1786.
19- “The Death of Chramn”, Luminais, Steel Plate Photogravure printed in the 1880’s.
Chram rose in rebellion against his father Chlothar, a king of the Franks, on several occasions. Following one of these rebellions, he fled with his wife and children to the court of Chanao, the ruler of Brittany, pursued by his father. Chlotar gave battle to the combined forces of Chanao and Chram, and his army was successful; the Breton leader was killed, and Chram, delayed in making his escape by sea because of his concern for his family's safety, was captured. Chlothar gave orders that they should be burned, but Chram was strangled before being placed in a cottage, which was subsequently burned. Chlothar reportedly died of remorse later that year.
20- Bats. (Chiroptera)
1. Phyllostoma spectrum - Vampire Bat.
2. Pteropus edulis . Kalong Bat.
3. Molossus Velox. Bulldog Bat.
Original steel engraving, printed in the 1800’s.
21- Dance of Death - “The Merchant”. Extremely rare Dance of Death print by the Swiss artist Jacques-Antony Chovin after Merian. Hand coloured copper engraving printed and coloured in 1820, in Switzerland.
22- Les Imfiniment Pette. Original steel engraving printed in the 1800’s. Very detailed print of a wizard showing a fellow a magic mirror, skull and snake near the ground. Very rare print!
23- Junfern Kuss (Iron Maiden), from a magazine printed in 1876.
24- Original woodblock print of two men being burnt at the stake. Leaf from Sebastian Münster’s “Cosmography”, printed in 1568 (Reverse has an image of men harvesting wheat but is not visible in the frame).
This leaf originally appeared in this monumental 16th century landmark work, which was one of the earliest attempts in Europe to systematically and accurately organize, describe and depict the entire world as it was then known. It is encyclopedic in nature and scope, and discusses the various cultures, topography and history for all parts of the world -- much of it speculative and wildly inaccurate. It should be pointed out that Münster was writing this book only some 50 year or so after Columbus discovered the Americas, and thus captures the world through the eyes of this Renaissance/ early modern Europe era.
25- Collection of antique poison labels from the 1800’s.
26- Original Hand Coloured Woodcut by Hans Weiditz. Leaf from a book originally published in Frankfurt in 1532, this leaf is possibly from a later edition printed between 1590 to 1620.
From Francesco Petrarca’s Book entitled: Hülff Trost und Rath in allem anligen der Menschen. Francisci Petrarche... zwei Trostbücher von Artznei und Rath beyde im güten und widerwertigen Glück. Hans Weiditz the Younger, Hans Weiditz der Jüngere, Hans Weiditz II (1495 Freiburg im Breisgau - c1537 Bern), was a German Renaissance artist, also known as The Petrarch Master for his woodcuts illustrating Petrarch's De remediis utriusque fortunae, or Remedies for Both Good and Bad Fortune, or Phisicke Against Fortune. He is best known today for his very lively scenes and caricatures of working life and people, many created to illustrate the abstract philosophical maxims of Cicero and Petrarch.
27- Leutemann, Reynard and Merknau from “Reynard the Fox” printed in the 1860’s.
28- Jan Luyken, etching from “This Unworthy World” Printed in Amsterdam in 1710.
During his lifetime, Jan Luyken published collections of poetry, among them, Treasures of the Soul (1678), Jesus and the Soul (1687), Sparks of Love (1687),
and This Unworthy World (1710), illustrated with his own etchings.
The world is personalized by a sphere with a cross on it.
Jan Luycken (1649-1712)
Amsterdam born artist, engraver and poet Jan Luyken (1649-1712) was a very important etcher in the period after Rembrandt. His artistry is distinguished by its clarity and detail.
Jan Luyken was born in Amsterdam on April 16, 1649, into a family that had become Mennonites shortly before his birth. His father was a schoolteacher and writer. Jan Luyken was nineteen years old when his father died. After his father’s death, he began to study painting at the studio of Martins Saeghmolen. Although Luyken became a fine painter, he eventually concentrated solely on being an engraver. While studying with Saeghmolen, Jan Luyken began to frequent the tavern, Zaete Rust (Sweet Rest), run by the innkeeper poet, Jan Zoet. At this time Jan Luyken began to write sensual love poetry. By 1673, Jan Luyken was twenty-four years old and a celebrated artist and poet. He had also married and had a two-year old son, named Casper. At this point, though, he turned his back on his former life and became a devout Christian, renewing his ties to the Mennonite church. The son, Casper, was a fine engraver himself, and worked closely with his father.
29- Antique postcard, Capuchin Catacomb, Palermo, Sicily.
30- Death Receiving his Latest Victim, Woodcut signed C. Kangey from an antique book of Goethe’s works. Printed in 1885.
31- Hallstatt Salzkammergut, Beinhaus Antique postcard of an Austrian “Bonehouse” (Beinhaus).
32- “La Jeune Fille et la Morte” (The young girl and Death), Original etching by Leon Gaucherel from Sarah Bernhardt's (now lost) original Memento Mori painting, displayed in the 1880 Paris Salon. Printed in 1880. Very rare print!
33- “The Gambler”. Original D. Deuchar, Dance of Death, printed in 1803. Based on Holbein’s Dance of Death.
34- Dance of Death “The Old Woman”, Wenceslaus Hollar, printed in 1804
The love of life has ceased in thee,
Who long hast known this suffering strife;
Then come along to rest with me,
For Death is better now than life.
35- “The Departure of Witches” by Luis Falero from an antique art journal printed in 1902.
36- Rowlandson’s English Dance of Death. Printed in 1903 based on an early 1800’s aquatint by Rowlandson.
“The Serjeant’s tongue will cease to brawl...In every court of yonder Hall”
37- “Les Oubles” (The Forgotten), Salon de Paris 1894, Girardet.
38- Nosce te Ipsum (Know Thyself), Illustration of a Bible scene, Engraving from “Physica Sacra” (Kupfer-Tafeln zu der Physica Sacra. Augsburg: Pfeffel , 1731), By Johann Jakob Scheuchzer. Printed in 1731.
This original copper engraving is from the monumental work by the palaeontologist Johann Jakob Scheuchzer (Aug.2, 1672- June 23, 1733), who believed in the literal meaning of the Bible. For instance, he believed that the Great Flood happened and was convinced that he had in his fossil collection the remains of a human victim who had perished in that Flood. Scheuchzer published this work, attempting to illustrate and help to explain the entire Bible based on the latest state of scientific knowledge, which turned out to be one of the most expensive Bible productions ever. The engraver signed the engraving and there are many signatories, showing that there was a large group of artists and artisans that worked on this wonderful undertaking.
39- “Funeral Vault Of The Imperial Family” (Church Of The Capuchins Vienna), Drawn by W.H.Bartlett, Engraved by E.I.Roberts, printed in 1840.
William Henry Bartlett born in 1809, became one of the foremost illustrators of Topography of his generation, a prolific print Illustrator he travelled extensively.
This Print is from his travels and was published in “The Danube” a book by William Beattie in 1840.
40- Antique Medical Print from “Dictionnaire Histoire Naturelle” by Charles d’Orbigny (1802-1857). Hand coloured engraving printed in 1849.
Charles d’Orbigny was a French naturalist who made major contributions in many areas, including zoology, malacology, palaeontology, geology, archaeology and anthropology. D'Orbigny travelled on a mission for the Paris Museum, in South America between 1826 and 1833, and returned to France with an enormous collection of more than 10,000 natural history specimens. He described part of his findings in La Relation du Voyage dans l'Amérique Méridionale pendant les annés 1826 à 1833. His contemporary, Charles Darwin called this book "one of the great monuments of science in the 19th century". In 1853 he became professor of palaeontology at the Paris Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, his Dictionnaire Universel d’Histoire Naturelle published in 1849 by Renard & Martinet, Paris is considered by many experts to be the finest and best illustrated natural history work of the era.
41- “To nature and your self appeal, nor learn of others what to feel.”, by William Hogarth. Original engraving produced in the 1840’s. Very detailed and very unusual!
42- William Hogarth, Grave Diggers Gambling on a Coffin. Very detailed engraving. Produced by Nicol Pall-Mall and Boydell Cheapside between 1791 to 1798.
43- Rowlandson’s English Dance of Death. Printed in 1903 based on an early 1800’s aquatint by Rowlandson.
“The Doctor’s sick’ning toil to close, “Recipe Coffin,” is the dose.”
44- Antique Etching of two Skeletons embracing each other, Unknown artist and unknown age, possibly 1950’s or earlier. Very fine print.
45- The Skeletons of Calude and the Hunchback of Notre Dame in the vault of Montfaucon, By Luc Olivier Merson and Gery Bichard. From Victor Hugos “Quasimodo” Printed in the 1890’s
46- The Visions of Dom Claude, His Hallucinations by Lamplight, By Luc Olivier Merson and Gery Bichard. From Victor Hugos “Quasimodo” Printed in the 1890’s.
47- “The Procession of Death”, from a painting by Spangenberg. From an old art journal (Text and image on reverse) printed in 1892.
48- Antique postcard, “Palermo Catacombe dei Cappucini”.
49- “The Death of Cleopatra” original steel plate engraving, printed in the 1860’s or 1870’s.
50- Original plate from “The Structure of the Different Parts Of The Human Body”
By Jones Quain, M.D.. Printed in 1854 (third edition) Very rare.
Bones, Plate 15 - Posterior View of Skeleton.
51- Original plate from “The Structure of the Different Parts Of The Human Body”
By Jones Quain, M.D.. Printed in 1854 (third edition) Very rare.
Bones, Plate 24 - Bones of the Femur.
52- Very rare hand coloured engraving, “Deadly Nightshade”, from “Das Buch der Welt” (The Book of the World), printed in 1852.
53- Original plate from “The Structure of the Different Parts Of The Human Body”
By Jones Quain, M.D.. Printed in 1854 (third edition) Very rare.
Bones, Plate 1.
54- Le Mort et le Bucheron (Death and the Woodcutter),Very Rare 19th Century Hand Colored engraving by Jules David, from Jean de la Fontaines Fables, Gouget Edition. Possibly printed in the 1830’s.
55- Dance of Death, Original Hand Coloured Etching based on a painting by Kaspar Meglinger from his Dance of Death (Der Todtentanz) which consisted of 67 paintings which he painted between 1626 to 1635 on the Spreuer Bridge in Lucerne, Switzerland. Leaf from Der Todtentanz published in the late 1800’s, Rare Edition.
November 4th, 2012
Presented by Skull and Bones Gallery Auctioneer: Kurt Wiscombe
1- Lion Tamer Ellen Bright Being Mauled to Death by a Tiger in 1851. Original steel plate engraving Printed in 1852. From a German magazine published in 1852.
2- Gustave Dore, Satan Resting On The Mountain, leaf from Milton's Paradise Lost and Paradise Regained, original woodcut printed in 1895.
About The Artist: Gustave Doré was an Alsacian artist who specialized in book illustrations. Born in Strasbourg, France, on January 6, 1832, he began his artistic career in Paris when he was only 15 years old. His drawings and illustrations were groundbreaking and very popular, although he never won the acclaim of the artistic elite in France. In his later years, he spent much time in London, where he also opened a very popular gallery. He died on January 23, 1883, at the age of 51.
3- Dance of Death - “The Empress”. Extremely rare Dance of Death print by the Swiss artist Jacques-Antony Chovin after Merian. Hand coloured copper engraving printed and coloured in 1820, in Switzerland.
Death to The Empress
I dance before you, Mrs. Empress,
Dance after, the dance is mine.
Your courtiers have left you,
Death has here sneaked up on you too.
The Empress.
My proud body had much pleasure.
I lived as an emperor's wife.
Now I must come to this dance.
All spirits and joy have been taken from me.
The Dance of Death from Basel was in particular made famous through the copperplates that Matthäus Merian created 1616-1649. Merian's copperplates along with later impressions made by Chovin, Beck and Felix Schneider were published in editions through several centuries and made Basel's dance of death world famous throughout Europe.
Matthäus Merian is considered to be the person who has made the most complete and reliable representation of the dance of death in Basel.
4- Ostrich Skeleton, engraving from “Physica Sacra” (Kupfer-Tafeln zu der Physica Sacra, Augsburg: Pfeffel , 1731), By Johann Jakob Scheuchzer. Printed in 1731.
This original copper engraving is from the monumental work by the palaeontologist Johann Jakob Scheuchzer (Aug.2, 1672- June 23, 1733), who believed in the literal meaning of the Bible. For instance, he believed that the Great Flood happened and was convinced that he had in his fossil collection the remains of a human victim who had perished in that Flood. Scheuchzer published this work, attempting to illustrate and help to explain the entire Bible based on the latest state of scientific knowledge, which turned out to be one of the most expensive Bible productions ever. The engraver signed the engraving and there are many signatories, showing that there was a large group of artists and artisans that worked on this wonderful undertaking.
5- "The Voice of the Tocsin" by A. Maignan, engraved by Gebbie & Husson printed in 1888.
A copy of this print was displayed at the 1889 Paris World Exhibition, which was a time of celebration and remembrance of the French Revolution. A tocsin is an alarm bell.
Alarm, dismay and frantic commotion are the characteristics of this great painting. Ruin and desolation are in the air, and you fancy you can hear the tumult of clang for fire or fury issuing from the mouth of the great bronze bell which swings in its maddening reverberations. The artist, with a weirdness of effect which proclaims him a poet with an imagination equal to Dante, has peopled rope and rim and tongue with elfin figures of grim, devilish energy and activity in a perfect whirl of sympathy with the tumult, and you might imagine a trumpet tongue proclaiming in thunder tones: ''Let slip the dogs of war.''
Had the French artist gone for his title to Shakespeare, he might have labelled this picture with an appropriate motto: "The harsh and "boisterous tongue of war."
The tricolor torn and given to the breeze, the smoke and flame tell of the demon of destruction, and the clouded air is charged with death and rapine and murder. We heard a worthy New Yorker say when he beheld this picture in the Paris Exposition: "I feel like running to a fire somewhere."
Albert Maignan was born at Beaumont in 1847; studied under Luminais; received his first medal in 1874, another in 1876 and 1879; his painting of Dante Encountering Mathilde received the honour of the Luxembourg in 1881. He received a gold medal at the Paris Exposition, 1889.
6- Adolf Hering, “Der Tod und das Madchen” (Death and the Maiden), Antique Postcard.
7- Rare hand coloured copper plate engraving printed in 1799. From a rare edition of “Histoire Naturelle, Generele et Particuliere” by George- Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon, Published in Paris, By DuFart.
8- “Death & The Woodcutter” by Gustav Dore, leaf from Fontaines Fables printed in 1870.
9- Dance of Death - “The Empress”, by Wenceslaus Hollar, Printed in 1804. Based on Holbein’s Dance of Death.
Ye who walk forth in pomp superb,
Within brief space to Death must bow;
As bends beneath the tread the herb,
Ye also must be trodden low.
10- Dance of Death - “The Duchess”, by D. Deuchar, , printed in 1803. Based on Holbein’s Dance of Death.
Thou ne’er shalt leave that bed of down,
On which thou art about to lie.
Death round thee hath his meshes thrown,
And, vain one! thou must surely die.
11- Original page from an 1871 issue of the UK weekly newspaper, The Graphic.
In 1871 there was conflict in Paris between a government known as the Paris Commune and loyalist Versailles troops, these troops and members of the national guard went around and burnt down many buildings in Paris. As part of a propaganda campaign the powers that be at the time came up with Les Pétroleuses, who, according to rumours at the time were a group of lower class women who went around using petroleum (molotov cocktails) to burn down the buildings in Paris. It turned out later that this was a completely made up story, there were no Pétroleuses, and no women were ever convicted of burning down buildings during the uprising.
This print survives as an original piece of that propaganda.
12- “Gods Acre” Steel Plate Engraving by Miss E. Osborne and H. Bourne printed in the 1870’s.
13- Antique Medical Print from “Dictionnaire Histoire Naturelle” by Charles d’Orbigny (1802-1857). Hand coloured engraving printed in 1849.
Charles d’Orbigny was a French naturalist who made major contributions in many areas, including zoology, malacology, palaeontology, geology, archaeology and anthropology. D'Orbigny travelled on a mission for the Paris Museum, in South America between 1826 and 1833, and returned to France with an enormous collection of more than 10,000 natural history specimens. He described part of his findings in La Relation du Voyage dans l'Amérique Méridionale pendant les annés 1826 à 1833. His contemporary, Charles Darwin called this book "one of the great monuments of science in the 19th century". In 1853 he became professor of palaeontology at the Paris Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, his Dictionnaire Universel d’Histoire Naturelle published in 1849 by Renard & Martinet, Paris is considered by many experts to be the finest and best illustrated natural history work of the era.
14- Rowlandson’s English Dance of Death. Printed in 1903 based on an early 1800’s aquatint by Rowlandson.
“It is in vain that you decide...Death claims you as his destined bride”
15- Original woodcut from “Icones Historiarum Veteris Testamentihans”. Shadrach, Meshach cast into the fire, from a suite of woodcuts designed by Hans Holbein the younger (1497-1543), printed in 1525.
The engraver for this series is Hans Lutzenburger (died 1526), a German engraver probably from Augsburg who was a citizen of Basel in 1505 and member of the academy of painters from Basel in 1508.
Hans Holbein the Younger (1497-1543) - German School
He was a German artist and printmaker who worked in a Northern Renaissance style. He is best known for his numerous portraits and his woodcut series of the Dance of Death. Holbein was born in Augsburg, Bavaria and learned painting from his father Hans Holbein the Elder. Later he went with his brother Ambrosius Holbein to Basel where he met many scholars, among them the Dutch humanist Erasmus. Holbein was asked by Erasmus to illustrate his satires. He also illustrated other books, and contributed to Martin Luther's translation of the Bible. Like his father, he designed stained glass windows and painted portraits.
This work, together with his Dance of Death is counted among his major achievements in woodcut series.
16- Greenwood Cemetery- Brooklyn, NY. by Rudolf Cronau, woodcut from an art journal printed in 1881.
17- “The Bathos”, From the Original of design by William Hogarth. Very fine, steel engraving printed circa 1850. Surreal image of Satan at the end of the world!
18- “Death of Lucretia”, Leaf from Galerie du Palais Royal by Couche & Builliard, Paris. Printed in 1786.
19- “The Death of Chramn”, Luminais, Steel Plate Photogravure printed in the 1880’s.
Chram rose in rebellion against his father Chlothar, a king of the Franks, on several occasions. Following one of these rebellions, he fled with his wife and children to the court of Chanao, the ruler of Brittany, pursued by his father. Chlotar gave battle to the combined forces of Chanao and Chram, and his army was successful; the Breton leader was killed, and Chram, delayed in making his escape by sea because of his concern for his family's safety, was captured. Chlothar gave orders that they should be burned, but Chram was strangled before being placed in a cottage, which was subsequently burned. Chlothar reportedly died of remorse later that year.
20- Bats. (Chiroptera)
1. Phyllostoma spectrum - Vampire Bat.
2. Pteropus edulis . Kalong Bat.
3. Molossus Velox. Bulldog Bat.
Original steel engraving, printed in the 1800’s.
21- Dance of Death - “The Merchant”. Extremely rare Dance of Death print by the Swiss artist Jacques-Antony Chovin after Merian. Hand coloured copper engraving printed and coloured in 1820, in Switzerland.
22- Les Imfiniment Pette. Original steel engraving printed in the 1800’s. Very detailed print of a wizard showing a fellow a magic mirror, skull and snake near the ground. Very rare print!
23- Junfern Kuss (Iron Maiden), from a magazine printed in 1876.
24- Original woodblock print of two men being burnt at the stake. Leaf from Sebastian Münster’s “Cosmography”, printed in 1568 (Reverse has an image of men harvesting wheat but is not visible in the frame).
This leaf originally appeared in this monumental 16th century landmark work, which was one of the earliest attempts in Europe to systematically and accurately organize, describe and depict the entire world as it was then known. It is encyclopedic in nature and scope, and discusses the various cultures, topography and history for all parts of the world -- much of it speculative and wildly inaccurate. It should be pointed out that Münster was writing this book only some 50 year or so after Columbus discovered the Americas, and thus captures the world through the eyes of this Renaissance/ early modern Europe era.
25- Collection of antique poison labels from the 1800’s.
26- Original Hand Coloured Woodcut by Hans Weiditz. Leaf from a book originally published in Frankfurt in 1532, this leaf is possibly from a later edition printed between 1590 to 1620.
From Francesco Petrarca’s Book entitled: Hülff Trost und Rath in allem anligen der Menschen. Francisci Petrarche... zwei Trostbücher von Artznei und Rath beyde im güten und widerwertigen Glück. Hans Weiditz the Younger, Hans Weiditz der Jüngere, Hans Weiditz II (1495 Freiburg im Breisgau - c1537 Bern), was a German Renaissance artist, also known as The Petrarch Master for his woodcuts illustrating Petrarch's De remediis utriusque fortunae, or Remedies for Both Good and Bad Fortune, or Phisicke Against Fortune. He is best known today for his very lively scenes and caricatures of working life and people, many created to illustrate the abstract philosophical maxims of Cicero and Petrarch.
27- Leutemann, Reynard and Merknau from “Reynard the Fox” printed in the 1860’s.
28- Jan Luyken, etching from “This Unworthy World” Printed in Amsterdam in 1710.
During his lifetime, Jan Luyken published collections of poetry, among them, Treasures of the Soul (1678), Jesus and the Soul (1687), Sparks of Love (1687),
and This Unworthy World (1710), illustrated with his own etchings.
The world is personalized by a sphere with a cross on it.
Jan Luycken (1649-1712)
Amsterdam born artist, engraver and poet Jan Luyken (1649-1712) was a very important etcher in the period after Rembrandt. His artistry is distinguished by its clarity and detail.
Jan Luyken was born in Amsterdam on April 16, 1649, into a family that had become Mennonites shortly before his birth. His father was a schoolteacher and writer. Jan Luyken was nineteen years old when his father died. After his father’s death, he began to study painting at the studio of Martins Saeghmolen. Although Luyken became a fine painter, he eventually concentrated solely on being an engraver. While studying with Saeghmolen, Jan Luyken began to frequent the tavern, Zaete Rust (Sweet Rest), run by the innkeeper poet, Jan Zoet. At this time Jan Luyken began to write sensual love poetry. By 1673, Jan Luyken was twenty-four years old and a celebrated artist and poet. He had also married and had a two-year old son, named Casper. At this point, though, he turned his back on his former life and became a devout Christian, renewing his ties to the Mennonite church. The son, Casper, was a fine engraver himself, and worked closely with his father.
29- Antique postcard, Capuchin Catacomb, Palermo, Sicily.
30- Death Receiving his Latest Victim, Woodcut signed C. Kangey from an antique book of Goethe’s works. Printed in 1885.
31- Hallstatt Salzkammergut, Beinhaus Antique postcard of an Austrian “Bonehouse” (Beinhaus).
32- “La Jeune Fille et la Morte” (The young girl and Death), Original etching by Leon Gaucherel from Sarah Bernhardt's (now lost) original Memento Mori painting, displayed in the 1880 Paris Salon. Printed in 1880. Very rare print!
33- “The Gambler”. Original D. Deuchar, Dance of Death, printed in 1803. Based on Holbein’s Dance of Death.
34- Dance of Death “The Old Woman”, Wenceslaus Hollar, printed in 1804
The love of life has ceased in thee,
Who long hast known this suffering strife;
Then come along to rest with me,
For Death is better now than life.
35- “The Departure of Witches” by Luis Falero from an antique art journal printed in 1902.
36- Rowlandson’s English Dance of Death. Printed in 1903 based on an early 1800’s aquatint by Rowlandson.
“The Serjeant’s tongue will cease to brawl...In every court of yonder Hall”
37- “Les Oubles” (The Forgotten), Salon de Paris 1894, Girardet.
38- Nosce te Ipsum (Know Thyself), Illustration of a Bible scene, Engraving from “Physica Sacra” (Kupfer-Tafeln zu der Physica Sacra. Augsburg: Pfeffel , 1731), By Johann Jakob Scheuchzer. Printed in 1731.
This original copper engraving is from the monumental work by the palaeontologist Johann Jakob Scheuchzer (Aug.2, 1672- June 23, 1733), who believed in the literal meaning of the Bible. For instance, he believed that the Great Flood happened and was convinced that he had in his fossil collection the remains of a human victim who had perished in that Flood. Scheuchzer published this work, attempting to illustrate and help to explain the entire Bible based on the latest state of scientific knowledge, which turned out to be one of the most expensive Bible productions ever. The engraver signed the engraving and there are many signatories, showing that there was a large group of artists and artisans that worked on this wonderful undertaking.
39- “Funeral Vault Of The Imperial Family” (Church Of The Capuchins Vienna), Drawn by W.H.Bartlett, Engraved by E.I.Roberts, printed in 1840.
William Henry Bartlett born in 1809, became one of the foremost illustrators of Topography of his generation, a prolific print Illustrator he travelled extensively.
This Print is from his travels and was published in “The Danube” a book by William Beattie in 1840.
40- Antique Medical Print from “Dictionnaire Histoire Naturelle” by Charles d’Orbigny (1802-1857). Hand coloured engraving printed in 1849.
Charles d’Orbigny was a French naturalist who made major contributions in many areas, including zoology, malacology, palaeontology, geology, archaeology and anthropology. D'Orbigny travelled on a mission for the Paris Museum, in South America between 1826 and 1833, and returned to France with an enormous collection of more than 10,000 natural history specimens. He described part of his findings in La Relation du Voyage dans l'Amérique Méridionale pendant les annés 1826 à 1833. His contemporary, Charles Darwin called this book "one of the great monuments of science in the 19th century". In 1853 he became professor of palaeontology at the Paris Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, his Dictionnaire Universel d’Histoire Naturelle published in 1849 by Renard & Martinet, Paris is considered by many experts to be the finest and best illustrated natural history work of the era.
41- “To nature and your self appeal, nor learn of others what to feel.”, by William Hogarth. Original engraving produced in the 1840’s. Very detailed and very unusual!
42- William Hogarth, Grave Diggers Gambling on a Coffin. Very detailed engraving. Produced by Nicol Pall-Mall and Boydell Cheapside between 1791 to 1798.
43- Rowlandson’s English Dance of Death. Printed in 1903 based on an early 1800’s aquatint by Rowlandson.
“The Doctor’s sick’ning toil to close, “Recipe Coffin,” is the dose.”
44- Antique Etching of two Skeletons embracing each other, Unknown artist and unknown age, possibly 1950’s or earlier. Very fine print.
45- The Skeletons of Calude and the Hunchback of Notre Dame in the vault of Montfaucon, By Luc Olivier Merson and Gery Bichard. From Victor Hugos “Quasimodo” Printed in the 1890’s
46- The Visions of Dom Claude, His Hallucinations by Lamplight, By Luc Olivier Merson and Gery Bichard. From Victor Hugos “Quasimodo” Printed in the 1890’s.
47- “The Procession of Death”, from a painting by Spangenberg. From an old art journal (Text and image on reverse) printed in 1892.
48- Antique postcard, “Palermo Catacombe dei Cappucini”.
49- “The Death of Cleopatra” original steel plate engraving, printed in the 1860’s or 1870’s.
50- Original plate from “The Structure of the Different Parts Of The Human Body”
By Jones Quain, M.D.. Printed in 1854 (third edition) Very rare.
Bones, Plate 15 - Posterior View of Skeleton.
51- Original plate from “The Structure of the Different Parts Of The Human Body”
By Jones Quain, M.D.. Printed in 1854 (third edition) Very rare.
Bones, Plate 24 - Bones of the Femur.
52- Very rare hand coloured engraving, “Deadly Nightshade”, from “Das Buch der Welt” (The Book of the World), printed in 1852.
53- Original plate from “The Structure of the Different Parts Of The Human Body”
By Jones Quain, M.D.. Printed in 1854 (third edition) Very rare.
Bones, Plate 1.
54- Le Mort et le Bucheron (Death and the Woodcutter),Very Rare 19th Century Hand Colored engraving by Jules David, from Jean de la Fontaines Fables, Gouget Edition. Possibly printed in the 1830’s.
55- Dance of Death, Original Hand Coloured Etching based on a painting by Kaspar Meglinger from his Dance of Death (Der Todtentanz) which consisted of 67 paintings which he painted between 1626 to 1635 on the Spreuer Bridge in Lucerne, Switzerland. Leaf from Der Todtentanz published in the late 1800’s, Rare Edition.
