A unique collection of engravings copied from renowned German and Dutch engravers of the 17th and 18th centuries, depicting the most famous and admired monuments in Rome and Paris.
This volume is a made-up and unique exemplar of a series of plates copied from different esteemed publications, bound together in the early 18th century and preceded by a manuscript title on the front pastedown: Views or Prospects of Places Abroad. The first two plates are a copy in reverse from plates 61 and 60 of Iconographia (1670) by the German engraver Melchior Küsel (1626-1683), and they depict an architectural capriccio fancifully identified as the loggia and the forecourt of the Palace of the King of Persia. The original engravings were etched after drawings by the German painter Johann Wilhelm Bauer (1607-1640) and the series was such a huge success that it went through numerous editions between 1670 and 1702.
The rest of the plates are copied from two different works of the same engraver: Peter Schenk (or Pieter Schenck) the Elder (1660-1711), a German-born engraver and cartographer active in Amsterdam and Leipzig. He studied under the most renowned Dutch engravers of his time and was also a globe maker: together with his master and later brother-in-law Gerard Valck, they produced the best globes in the Netherlands and held a monopoly on the business for nearly 50 years. Schenk became part of a great family of engravers: not only he married his master’s sister, Agatha Valck, but all three of his sons followed in his footsteps, with Peter the Younger taking over his workshop in Leipzig and Jan and Leonard continuing his work in Amsterdam. Even his daughter Maria carried on his legacy by marrying Leonard Valck, the son of Gerard who was running the Valck workshop.
A total of 8 plates are copied from Schenk’s Roma Aeterna. Sive, Ipsius aedificiorum romanorum, integrorum collapsorumque, conspectus duplex (1705), a collection of 100 views of ancient and contemporary Rome. The prints show views of the most important ancient buildings in Rome, some in various stages of decay, including St. Peter’s church in the Vatican, Castle Sant’Angelo and the Capitol. The artis himself described this series of views as one of his most important works. The British Museum holds the same group of eight plates in an album which belonged to the famous collector Sir Hans Sloane [Museum number: 2AA+,a.75.62-69].
The remaining plates are copied from another monumental work by Schenk, Ooge-lust: sive ejus Paradisi oculorum (1702), published in two volumes, an extremely rare collection of 100 views of some of the most popular destinations for the Grand Tour, such as Paris, Rotterdam, Naples and Genoa. The engravings in this volume are copied from the section in the second volume dedicated to Paris, titled Lutetiae Parisiorum conspectus, praefertim circa portas pontes, templa, et palatia, amoenissimus ac elegantissimus. Among the landmarks illustrated are the Louvre, Notre Dame, views from the river Seine and the magnificent arches that still characterise the city today.
The plates are an almost exact replicas of the original engravings, with only small differences. Some are reversed and the name of the engraver or the number of the plate have been scrapped, and some others present different details in the design. Schenk and his partner produced several prints specifically for the London market, and the production of these copies, which would have been sold at a cheaper price, is a testimony to their long-lasting success and their high demand “abroad.”
Provenance. The book was twice a gift. Originally from Henry John Todd (1763-1845), librarian at Lambeth Palace and known editor of John Milton. A manuscript annotation on the front pastedown reads: “EMGrosvenor given me by Maria. Nov. 27. 1836. Given to her by the Rev. H. J. Todd.” This was Lady Elizabeth Mary (Leveson-Gower) Grosvenor (1797-1891), daughter of the Duke of Sutherland and wife of Richard, Earl Grosvenor, later the 2nd Marquess of Westminster. She was the author of Narrative of a Yacht Voyage in the Mediterranean in the Years 1840-41 (2 vols., London: John Murray, 1842). Armorial bookplate on front pastedown bearing monogram “EJS” (?) surmounted by an earl’s coronet; later bookplate removed.
Contents. [1-2]. Copied from the plates in the original Iconographia (1670) numbered: 61, 60. [3-10]. Copied from the plates in the original Roma Aeterna (1705) numbered: 73, 74, 51, 75, 17, 76, 52, 41. [11-26]. Copied from the plates in the original Ooge-lust: sive ejus Paradisi oculorum (1702), Vol. 2. Unnumbered: [30-45].
