Measured Drawings of an Obelisk, Pyramids and Column, Niebuhr, 1776
€ 175
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
26.5 × 21 cm (10.4 × 8.3 in)
Condition
Good
Reference
BG-14407-1-5
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
Light uneven toning, browner toward the edges. Handling soiling along the bottom, right and top edges. Scattered light foxing in the margin. Light creases across the sheet. A pencil number on the reverse shows faintly at the lower left.
About this sheet
This is an original antique copper engraving from 1776, a plate of measured drawings. It carries no title or caption; the sheet is described here from what is drawn, its parts keyed with the letters A to E.
At the upper left, C is an obelisk drawn in outline with construction lines running from its tip to a baseline, the points lettered a to g. At the upper right, D is a pyramid on a rocky rise with sight lines drawn from the point d beside it to the points a and b on the plain below. Across the middle, E shows two pyramids standing on rough ground, joined by dotted sight lines and lettered with points from a to n. Below, two square plans of pyramids with their faces shaded and their corners lettered are tied to the views above by a dotted line, and are also marked E. At the center, B is a round plan with three square chambers projecting from it and an opening at the bottom, and at the right, A is a tall column with a flaring capital and a band around the shaft.
The credit C. J. de Huyser, direx. f. is lettered under the lower right corner, and the plate number Tab: V. 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.
Light uneven toning, browner toward the edges. Handling soiling along the bottom, right and top edges. Scattered light foxing in the margin. Light creases across the sheet. A pencil number on the reverse shows faintly at the lower left.
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.
