Portrait Epitaphs and Monuments of Distinguished Persons. With Remarks by Martin Cawood. Leeds 1847

Edité par NA, Leeds, England, 1847

A propos de cet article

Truly a curious, even eccentric, "hall of fame" album of original watercolors depicting the tombstones or funereal monuments of some of the most outstanding figures of English history, science and culture, including Anne Boleyn, Dr. Johnson, Hogarth, Shakespeare, William Pitt the Younger, Charles Fox, etc. 4to. 30.5 by 24 cm. Unpaginated, 49 leaves, not counting tissue guards. Missing title leaf -- a shadow of the title was offset onto its tissue guard leaf which remains. Manuscript table of contents or key, designated as "Monumental Drawings, of the following distinguished persons", listing the 24 notables. Each notable is here honored, in addition to the watercolor, with a printed portrait plate, or in the case of Izaac Walton, two mounted prints, genre scenes, on a single leaf. The watercolors are done with a meticulousness that one in a quick glance might mistake them as having been printed, especially because their captioning, done in pen-and-ink, and the writing on the monuments, is so neatly, indeed, perfectly, rendered. The other celebrated decedents are Sir William Wood, author of "The Bowman's Glory", John Emery, actor, John Bunyan, Charles Dibdin, the bibliophile, Paoli, John Walker, author of "The Pronouncing Dictionary", Alexander Aubert, philosopher, Isaac Watts, King Richard 1st, Castlereagh, Bishop Sherlock, Whitefield, preacher, Richard Brinsley Sheridan, William Parsons, actor, Sir Humpfrey Davy, chemist. While the subject matter might superficially come across as morbid, the monuments can be quite wondrous, exquisite even, architectural confections. The artist here might be coupled with those who make a hobby of tombstone rubbing, except here so much more is being presented -- color, shape, tufts of grass that grow around the monuments, etc. The pebbled cloth has patches of slight fading or color loss and a few trivial stains. Front joint with early starting in the upper reaches. Regardless, the binding remains attractive and in our view, requires no immediate attention. Light scattered foxing which we believe few will find much of an issue. The mounted printed plates can be more heavily foxed, and one sees stains from the old paste that has seeped through the print's paper. We note, also, the leaves, including the tissue guards, are of considerable weight, giving a substantial presence to the album. Half Morocco. Cloth on boards. Gilt decoration -- bands along leather edges by cloth. Raised bands on spine.

N° de réf. du vendeur 19818

Détails bibliographiques

• Titre: Portrait Epitaphs and Monuments of Distinguished Persons. With Remarks by Martin Cawood. Leeds 1847
• Éditeur: NA, Leeds, England
• Date de parution: 1847
• Reliure: Couverture rigide
• État de l'article: Very Good
• Catalogues du vendeur:
  • Manuscripts