Spanish Gypsies.

After Mathias Artaria, engraved by Friedrich Weber Spanish Gypsies. "Spanische Zigeuner. Gitanos." Stuttgart Eduard Hallberger. c1850
Copper engraving of a group of Spanish Gypsies by a fountain after the painting by Math. Artaria. Modern hand colour. Lightly toned and soiled; damp stain to upper left corner; plate mark at sides beginning to crack.
400 by 450mm (15¾ by 17¾ inches).    €160

The Apotheosis of Aeneas.

After Michel Corneille II, by Pierre Etienne Moitte. Apotheosis of Aeneas. "L'heureux destin d'Enée." Dresden. Georges Conrad Walther, 'A Paris chez Moitte, au coin de la rue St Julien le Pauvre, près le petit Chatelet, 1747.' 1747-1754
Black & white copper engraving of the Apotheosis of Aeneas from the Recueil d'estampes Gravées of aprez les tableaux et de la Galerie du Cabinet de SE Mr le comte de Bruhl, engraved by Pierre Etienne Moitte after the painting by Michel Corneille II
Numbered on plate: '31'; lettered with producers' names, publication address: 'A Paris chez Moitte, au coin de la rue St Julien le Pauvre, près le petit Chatelet, 1747', title, verses on either site of Bruhl's coat of arms ('Pour toi, Venus obtient un règne glorieux... l'eloquence est trop grande'), and provenance of original painting (collection of Comte de Bruhl).

The image shows the Apotheosis of Aeneas, with Ganymede pouring the ambrosia into a cup held by the young man who is sitting at centre, while nearby Zeus converses with Aphrodite, his arm placed around the goddess' shoulders.
It is said that Aphrodite asked Zeus to make Aeneas immortal, and as Zeus granted her request, the river god Numicius washed away all of Aeneas' mortal parts, and Aphrodite anointed him with Nectar and Ambrosia, making him a god, whom the people later worshipped under the name of Indiges. Dark impression; clean and bright; large paper; wide margins.
British Museum no:1850,0810.427; Le Blanc 11; Robert-Dumesnil VI 285 (102 nos) 435 by 565mm (17¼ by 22¼ inches).    €850

Aeneas fleeing Troy with his family

After Michel Corneille II, by Pierre Etienne Moitte. Aeneas fleeing Troy with his family "Enée sauvant sa famille de l'embrasement de Troie." Dresden. Georges Conrad Walther, 'A Paris chez Moitte, au coin de la rue St Julien le Pauvre, près le petit Chatelet, 1747.' 1747-1754
Black & white copper engraving of Aeneas fleeing Troy with his family the from the Recueil d'estampes Gravées of aprez les tableaux et de la Galerie du Cabinet de SE Mr le comte de Bruhl ...[ Plate 29], engraved by Pierre Etienne Moitte after the painting by Michel Corneille II
Numbered on plate: '29'; lettered with producers' names, publication address: 'A Paris chez Moitte, au coin de la rue St Julien le Pauvre, près le petit Chatelet, 1747', title, verses on either site of Bruhl's coat of arms ('Fils sensible et zélé... ne crains rien pour toy'), and provenance of original painting (collection of Comte de Bruhl).

The image shows Aeneas fleeing Troy with his family; the young bearded man stands at centre and gestures towards his family and some servants, who are approaching from the left; Aeneas' son Ascanius stands beside his father; Venus appears at centre and points to the right, while some putti can be seen carrying Aeneas' weapons with them.

Aeneas was born from the union of a mortal, Anchises and a goddess, Aphrodite. During the Trojan War, Aeneas, who some time before had been driven from Mount Ida by Achilles, was wounded by Diomedes and, having fainted, would have died if his mother had not come to his rescue. Aphrodite herself was wounded by Diomedes on this occasion, but then Apollo took over the protection of the Aeneas, removing him from the battle to the citadel, where his temple stood. In the sanctuary, Leto and Artemis healed Aeneas and made him even stronger. But for those fighting, Apollo fashioned a phantom of Aeneas, so that Achaeans and Trojans killed each other round it, until the real Aeneas, having recovered, returned to the field.
At the fall of Troy, Aeneas, who had been Leader of the Dardanians during the Trojan War, left the city in flames, and after wandering in the Mediterranean sea, came to Italy and founded the state that later became Rome. Dark impression; centre fold; generally bright; light toning; dampstain to lower margin; large paper; wide margins.
British Museum no:11850,0810.425; Le Blanc not described; Robert-Dumesnil VI 285 (102 nos) 435 by 565mm (17¼ by 22¼ inches).    €750

The "Triumph" of Aemilius Paulus.

After Monsiau, Nicolas-André by Vieth-Varenne. The "Triumph" of Aemilius Paulus. "Triomphe de Paul Emile" (2eme P.tie) Paris impremier par Jaques Prudhome c1820
Panoramic lithograph showing part of the Roman triumph of Aemilius Paulus after the painting byNicolas-André Monsiau, exhibited in Paris 1789. Modern hand colour
The image shows part of the Roman "Triumph " accorded to Aemilius Paulus after his victory over Perseus at Pydna and the conquest of Macedonia and the ending of the third Macedonian War

The Third Macedonian War broke out in 171 BC, when king Perseus of Macedon defeated a Roman army led by the consul Publius Licinius Crassus in the battle of Callinicus. After two years of results indecisive for either side, Paullus was elected consul again in 168 BC (with Gaius Licinius Crassus as colleague). As consul, he was appointed by the senate to deal with the Macedonian war. Shortly afterwards, on June 22, he won the decisive battle of Pydna. Perseus of Macedonia was made prisoner and the Third Macedonian War ended.
To set an example, Paullus ordered the killing of 500 prominent Macedonians known for their opposition to Rome. He also exiled many more to Italy and confiscated their belongings in the name of Rome but, according to Plutarch, kept too much to himself. Other sources report that he kept for himself only the extensive royal library,[2] in which act he set an example for later Roman generals, such as Lucullus. On setting out on the return to Rome in 167 BC, his legions were displeased with their share of the plunder. To keep them happy, Paullus decided on a stop in Epirus, a kingdom suspected of sympathizing with the Macedonian cause. The region had been already pacified, but Paullus ordered the sacking of seventy of its towns. 150,000 people were enslaved and the region was left to bankruptcy.
Paullus' return to Rome was glorious. With the immense plunder collected in Macedonia and Epirus, he celebrated a spectacular triumph, featuring no less than the captured king of Macedonia himself, and his sons, putting an end to the dynasty. As a gesture of acknowledgment, the senate awarded him the surname (cognomen) Macedonicus. This was the peak of his career. In 164 BC he was elected censor. He fell ill, appeared to be recovering, but relapsed within three days and died during his term of office in 160 BC. Bright and clean; modern hand colour; lower right corner torn off and repaired with different paper.
328 by 703mm (13 by 27¾ inches).    €160

The Continence of Scipio.

After Nicolas Poussin by Francis Legat. The Continence of Scipio "The Continence of Scipio." London. John Boydell. 1784
Black & white copper engraving of The Continence of Scipio, from John Boydell's Houghton Gallery.[a set of 162 prints reproducing paintings from the collection of Sir Robert Walpole at Houghton].
Proof before title; coat of arms, "Nichs. Poussin, pinxit./ J. Boydell excudit 1784/ Francis Legat Sculpsit./ In the Gallery [coat of arms] at Houghton./ Publish'd Jany. 1st1 1784, by John Boydell Engraver, in Cheapside London."
The image shows Scipio, on the far left, seated on a throne and being crowned with ivy, his left hand reaching out to Allucius, who bows before him; between the two stands a young woman, two soldiers on the right, stone tower in the background.

Scipio Africanus; Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus Major (236 BC - c.184 B)was a Roman general whose tactics concluded the second Punic War by defeating the Carthaginians in 206 and Hannibal in Africa in 202.
Many legends accumulated around him, many derived from stories of Alexander the Great. Dark impression; light toning; proof before title; margins trimmed to plate mark; creasing at lower edge in publishers imprint.
British Museum no:1982,U.1714.; Rubinstein II.52. 480 by 600mm (19 by 23½ inches).    €450

Apollo & Galateia.

After Paolo de Matteis by Pierre Etienne Moitte Apollo & Galatea. "Apollon et Galathée." Dresden: Georges Conrad Walther, 'A Paris chez Moitte au coin de la rue St Julien le Pauvre près le petit Chatelet 1748' 1748-1754
Black & white copper engraving of Apollo & Galateia from the Recueil d'estampes Gravées of aprez les tableaux et de la Galerie du Cabinet de SE Mr le comte de Bruhl ...[ Plate 46], engraved by Pierre Etienne Moitte after the painting after Paolo de Matteis.
Lettered in lower margin with title and eight lines of verse; and production details: "Paulus de Matthei Pinx." and "P. Moitte Sculp." and "Tableau de 6 pieds de longeur sur 4 de hauteur qui est dans la Gallerie de S.E.M.gr Le Comte de / Bruhl Chevalier de l'Ordre de l'Aigle Blanc et Premier Ministre de sa Majesté Le Roy de Pologne Electeur de Saxe.".
The image shows Apollo in his chariot greeting Galateia who sits on her shell drawn by dolphins and accompanied by mermaids and other sea-creatures.

Galateia was one of the Nereides, fifty goddess-nymphs of the sea. Her name means either "the goddess of calm seas" from galênê and theia or "milky-white" from galaktos. Galateia frequented the coast of Sicily where she attracted the attention of the CyclopsPolyphemos. The giant wooed her with tunes from his rustic pipes, and offerings of cheese, milk, and wild fruit. The nymph, however, spurned his advances and consorted instead with a handsome Sicillian youth named Akis. When Polyphemos learned of this, he fell into a jealous rage and crushed the boy beneath a rock. Galateia was grief-stricken and transformed Akis into a stream. Dark impression; centre fold; image clean and bright; slight toning and damp stain to edges of upper and side margins; large paper; wide margins.
British Museum no:1872,0608.43. 378 by 502mm (15 by 19¾ inches).    €1000

Hagar Received by Abraham.

After Phillip van Dyk, engraved by Jean Massard Hagar received by Abraham. "Agar recue par Abraham." Dediée à la Reine. Paris Jean Massard ,"Tiré du Cabinet de Mr. Servai chez l'Auteur ,rue Ste. Jacinthe, Place St. Michel, " 1785
Black & white copper engraving after the painting by Phillip van Dyck, engraved by Jean Massard, lettered Dediée à la Reinearound a composition with coats of arms of the Bourbons and the Habsburg-Lorraines Title and text in French.
The image shows the young Egyptian slave, naked, with the aged Abraham, in a richly draped bedroom, with Sarah, his wife standing above them, a serene and sad expression on her face; a servant peers around a curtain in the background.
The biblical story of how Sarah, Abraham's wife due to her sterility gives him her Egyptian slave Hagar to lie with to give him an heir is related in Genesis 16: 1-4.
Massard in the etching reproduces a painting entitled Sarah presenting Hagar to Abraham,now in the Louvre, by Philippe van Dyck.
The engraving is dedicated to the queen Marie Antoinette, and it has been suggested that the biblical theme of lack of maternity of Sarah and her marital relations with Abraham, could have been chosen to counter allusions to sexual troubled events of the French royal couple, at the time the subject of numerous satirical pamphlets and pornographic and poisonous gossip at court. The marriage took place in 1770, when the future Louis XVI was still Dauphin of France, and was not, of course, consumed in the first seven years, and Marie Antoinette did not have the first daughter, Maria Teresa Carlotta,until the end of 1778, and will bear the heir to the throne only in October 1781. Good Impression; margins trimmed close to plate mark.
575 by 470mm (22¾ by 18½ inches).    €300

Psyche Surprises Eros.

After Raphaël by A. Legrande [le Grande]. Psyche Surprises Eros. "L'Amour Supris." Paris "chez Bance, ainé, rue St Denis." C1790-1800
Black and white stipple engraving of Psyche uncovering Eros by Augustin Legearde after Rapaël. Title and text in French
It is attributed to Raphaël, but is more likely inspired by him and his famous frescoes of the Loggia di Psyche in the Villa Farnesina (1517-18) .

Psyche's beauty caused the jealousy and envy of Aphrodite In order to avenge herself, the goddess ordered Eros to inspire Psyche with a love for the most contemptible of all men: but Eros was so stricken with her beauty that he himself fell in love with her. He accordingly conveyed her to some charming place, where he, unseen and unknown, visited her every night, and left her as soon as the day began to dawn. Psyche might have continued to have enjoyed without interruption this state of happiness, if she had attended to the advice of her beloved, never to give way to her curiosity, or to inquire who he was. But her jealous sisters made her believe that in the darkness of night she was embracing some hideous monster, and accordingly once, while Amor was asleep, she approached him with a lamp, and, to her amazement, she beheld the most handsome and lovely of the gods. In her excitement of joy and fear, a drop of hot oil fell from her lamp upon his shoulder. This awoke Amor, who censured her for her mistrust, and escaped. Psyche's peace was now gone all at once, and after having attempted in vain to throw herself into a river, she wandered about from temple to temple, inquiring after her beloved, and at length came to the palace of Venus. There her real sufferings began, for Venus retained her, treated her as a slave, and inmposed upon her the hardest and most humiliating labours. Psyche would have perished under the weight of her sufferings, had not Amor, who still loved her in secret, invisibly comforted and assisted her in her labours. With his aid she at last succeeded in overcoming the jealousy and hatred of Venus; she became immortal, and was united with him for ever. Dark impression; light toning; scattered light spotting, most noticeable in blank margins.
407 by 470mm (16 by 18½ inches).    €500

The Toilette of Psyche.

After Raphaël by A. Legrande [le Grande]. The Toilette of Psyche. "La Toilette de Psiché." Paris "chez Bance, ainé, rue St Denis." C1790-1800.
Black and white stipple engraving of the Toilette of Psyche by Augustin Legearde after Rapaël. Title and text in French
The engraving shows Psyche with her attendents, It is attributed to Raphaël, but is more likely inspired by him and his famous frescoes of the Loggia di Psiche in the Villa Farnesina (1517-18) .
Psyche's beauty caused the jealousy and envy of Aphrodite In order to avenge herself, the goddess ordered Eros to inspire Psyche with a love for the most contemptible of all men: but Eros was so stricken with her beauty that he himself fell in love with her. He accordingly conveyed her to some charming place, where he, unseen and unknown, visited her every night, and left her as soon as the day began to dawn. Dark impression; light toning; scattered light spotting.
405 by 473mm (16 by 18½ inches).    €500

Tobias and the Angel.

After Rembrandt, engraved by J McArdell Tobias with the Angel. "Tobias with the Angel." from the Original in the COLLECTION of Mr Reynolds. London J. McArdell 1742-1765
Black & white Mezzotint by James McArdell after Rembrandt; Laid down to later paper.
Tobias with the Angel; Tobias sitting on riverbank with his dog beside him, the angel kneeling over him; both he and his dog gazing in terror at grotesque fish emerging from the Tigris at right; shepherds and figures crossing bridge in landscape beyond; Lettered with 'signature' as Rembrandt within image.

Tobias and the Angel is the title given to paintings and other artworks depicting a scene in which Tobias, son of Tobit, meets an angel without realising he is an angel (Book of Tobit, 5.5-6) and is then instructed by the angel what to do with a giant fish he catches (Book of Tobit, 6.2-9). Dark impression; trimmed to plate mark and laid down at some time to late [modern?] paper probably to preserve due to the following faults: creasing; upper right corner missing and replaced with later paper and pencil; 3 tears to upper margin [approx 20-30mm] ;long paper fault to sky.
British Museum No:1870,0625.582 [ proof before letters]; Goodwin 214.II; not in Chaloner Smith. 480 by 357mm (19 by 14 inches).    €350