Posts tagged engraving
Hats from History
By Charles Bretherton, 1782, via the British Museum.
(Thanks to sew18thcentury.com for posting this!)
“The Bumless Beauties” 1788 probably by Thomas Rowlandson, The Lewis Walpole Library
(Thanks to sew18thcentury.com for posting this!)
Lucy of Leinster by William Ward, 1788, via Donald Heald.
I love Lucy!
From Donald Heald:
“A sweet portrait of Thomas Tickell’s heroine “Lucy of Leinster,” engraved by the celebrated engraver William Ward.
William Ward is remembered as one of the most accomplished engravers of his day. He produced some of the most beautiful prints of the period, and his delicate engravings epitomize the style and sentiment of the age. Ward was primarily a mezzotint engraver but he also worked in stipple, executing hauntingly delicate prints that capture the soul and character of their subject. He studied under John Raphael Smith and quickly became one of his most distinguished pupils, incorporating his master’s delicate technique into his own distinctive style. Along with his brother James, William was a regular exhibitor at the Royal Academy and soon earned the privilege of becoming mezzotint engraver to the prince regent. This delicate image recalls the style of Ward’s master John Raphael Smith, who made a name for himself with his subtly suggestive portraits of women. Ward’s pretty portrait depicts the tragic heroine “Lucy of Leinster” from Thomas Tickell’s ballad “Lucy and Colin.” In Tickell’s sad work, Colin abandoned Lucy for a wealthier bride. Lucy died on her lover’s wedding day and, pursuant to her request, was brought to the church. Upon seeing his true love’s body, Colin succumbed to death as well, and the lovers were buried in the same tomb.”
A Party Angling and the Angler’s Repast, engravings after George Morland, 1789 via Donald Heald.
Y’all, those are some pretty amazing hats all around. If I didn’t have white guilt because of the presence of that poor slave, I would desperately want to recreate this whole scene.
More about Angling from Donald Heald:
“A pair of the most famous fishing prints after George Morland, the master of English genre painting.
During the eighteenth century punt fishing became a very fashionable sport, gentlemen and ladies gathered in droves to enjoy this popular outdoor pursuit. Morland was so struck with the charm of this pastime that he quickly rendered it on to canvas, thus creating two of his most cherished paintings. The two fashionable ladies pictured in the paintings are in fact Morland and Ward’s wives, while the gentlemen are John Raphael Smith and the engraver himself.”
(Source: donaldheald.com)
A Variety of Ladies Headdresses for the Present Year, Walker’s Hibernian Magazine, 1786.
In my opinion, the headwear of the late-1780s is the greatest in the history of the world.
Wenceslas Hollar
“Winter”
Czech, signed and dated AD 1643
Love that hood! (And muff and cute shoes peeking out)
(via centuriespast)
Wantonness Mask’d. A satire of a couple at a masquerade, the young man, on the left, has taken his mask off in his ardour, while the woman has not. 6th May 1771.
Hand-coloured mezzotint in the British Museum Collection.
(via brittleblackstars)
The Fortune Teller, after Matthew William Peters, 1786. Via Donald Heald.
Wow. This is one of the best 18th Century images I have ever seen. There is so much incredible detail!
On the fortune teller: No cap, hair covered by only a cloth. An elaborately trimmed but well-worn black silk-covered hat. Her cloak hood falling open so we can see the inside, especially the neckline, and that it is trimmed ‘round the face. The hem of her cloak is left raw and is unravelling and there might be a tear.
The fortune tellee (not a word…): A magnificent hat with some pretty glorious feathers- love that they are grey! The curls around her face actually look a bit like bangs which are very rare. A profusion of lace and ribbon around her neckline. A long sleeved gown or jacket (stripes!) ending in a simple white flounce.
I’m officially in love!
Archery (Plate 2), Robert Sayer & Co., 1792. Via Donald Heald.
And archery wasn’t just for the men! Women also participated, and frequently had fabulous archery costumes and uniforms that were typically dark green. As you can see from this image, their dress typically took on masculine features similar to riding habits of the period, including hats.
Archery (Plate 1) by Robert Sayer & Co., 1792. Via Donald Heald Prints and Drawings.
A beautiful image of a popular sport and hobby for the wealthy! Archery as a leisure activity became very fashionable in England in the late-18th century, and continued to be popular into the 19th Century.
Regalia used in the coronation of the English sovereign.
Plate IV of A Faithful Account of the Processions and Ceremonies of the Kings and Queens of England; exemplified by that of their most Sacred Majesties King George the Third and Queen Charlotte: with all the other interesting proceedings connected with that magnificent festival. Edited by Richard Thomson. London, 1820.
From The Atlantic Slave Trade and Slave Life in Americas database.
Engraving is from 1796.
Description from that site:
Engraving of Pringle at the age of about 36 sitting in front of her hotel/tavern/house of prostitution in Bridgetown, capital of Barbados; man on left has elephantiasis. Rachel Pringle was born a slave around 1753, the daughter of an African woman and her master, a Scottish schoolmaster. In the 1770s, she became the first free woman of color to own a hotel-tavern (and house of prostitution) in Barbados; when she died in 1792, at the age of 38, she was a relatively wealthy woman. See Jerome S. Handler, Joseph Rachell and Rachael Pringle-Polgreen: Petty Entrepreneurs, in D.G. Sweet and G. B. Nash, eds., Struggle and Survival in Colonial America (Univ. of California Press, 1981), pp. 376-391. Slide of engraving, courtesy of the late Neville Connell, Director of the Barbados Museum.)
I saw this image of Pringle multiple times in the few weeks I was in Barbados. I love it.
What a fascinating image!
Plate from the Diderot Enciclopedie.
Robert Dighton
“The Macaroni Painter is Richard Cosway, R.A., known for his foppish dress. The sitter, in full Macaroni regalia, appears entirely satisfied with himself.” (1772)
- Just a quick fact, Richard Cosway was the husband of Maria Cosway, the same Maria Cosway that Thomas Jefferson flirted with in Paris and to whom he wrote “A Dialogue Between My Head and My Heart”
I love love LOVE the macaroni with his ridiculous hat and hair!
(Source: onlyartists)
Beauty’s Lot, English, 1778
(Source: telemachus)
