Egyptian Hieroglyphs on Four Pointed Shafts, Antique Niebuhr Print, 1776
€ 240
Original antique · The actual sheet photographed · Certificate of authenticity on request · Sold unframed · Worldwide shipping from € 15 (rates)
Date
1776
Mapmaker / artist
Carsten Niebuhr; engraving directed by C. J. de Huyser
Publisher
S. J. Baalde, Amsterdam, and J. van Schoonhoven and Comp., Utrecht
Technique
Copper engraving
Coloring
Uncolored
Sheet size
28.5 × 21 cm (11.2 × 8.3 in)
Condition
Good
Reference
BG-14407-1-4
What the condition grades mean
Excellent
Bright and clean, with no faults worth mentioning.
Very good
Only light signs of age, such as faint toning.
Good
Normal signs of age for a sheet of this period: toning, some foxing, small marks or neat old repairs.
Fair
Clear faults such as staining, tears or repairs, priced to match.
Every fault we see is written in the condition note, and the whole sheet is shown uncropped in the photos.
Condition
A loss at the lower right corner, with the right margin cut away close to the printed border. Light uneven toning, browner toward the edges. Handling soiling along the right edge. A few small foxing spots in the margin.
About this sheet
This is an original antique copper engraving from 1776, a plate of Egyptian hieroglyphs. It carries no title or caption; the sheet is described here from what is drawn.
Four tall shafts stand side by side inside a ruled border, each ending in a pointed top. Under each point is a small scene of figures, seated and standing, and on two of the shafts a roughly shaded patch is drawn near the top. Below these scenes each shaft carries a single column of hieroglyphs running down its full length: large birds, a bull, seated figures, a bee, water signs, reed signs and many others, with signs enclosed in oval rings that contain a scarab. The signs are cut with shaded hatching against the plain ground of the shafts.
The credit C. J. de Huyser, direx. is lettered under the lower right corner of the border, and the plate number Tab. IV. is engraved at the upper right.
The plate comes from the first volume of Voyage en Arabie & en d'autres Pays circonvoisins, the French translation of Carsten Niebuhr's account, its title page reading TOME PREMIER. Traduit de l'Allemand. A AMSTERDAM, chez S. J. BAALDE. A UTRECHT, chez J. VAN SCHOONHOVEN & COMP. MDCCLXXVI. Carsten Niebuhr (1733 to 1815) was a German born surveyor in Danish service and the only member of the Danish expedition to Arabia (1761 to 1767), sent by King Frederick V of Denmark, to return alive. The account was first published in German at Copenhagen; this is the French translation printed in Amsterdam and Utrecht.
A loss at the lower right corner, with the right margin cut away close to the printed border. Light uneven toning, browner toward the edges. Handling soiling along the right edge. A few small foxing spots in the margin.
This is an original antique print, not a modern reproduction. This item is sold unframed. Any framed or interior images are shown for presentation and inspiration only, unless the listing explicitly states that the item is sold framed.
