Surgical Operating Chair, Diderot Chirurgie Supplement Plate 3, circa 1778

€ 340

Original antique · The actual sheet photographed · Certificate of authenticity on request · Sold unframed · Worldwide shipping from € 15 (rates)

Date: circa 1778
Mapmaker / artist: Not named on the sheet
Publisher: Giuseppe Aubert, Livorno
Technique: Copper Engraving
Coloring: Uncolored
Condition: Good
Reference: BG-13259-42

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. Marked handling soiling along the bottom, left and right edges. Foxing over much of the margin. Slight wear at the bottom right and top left corners.

About this sheet

An original antique copper engraving, uncolored, with two numbered views of a heavy wooden operating chair. Fig. 1 shows the chair in three quarter view: a tall padded and buttoned back, m, edged with close set nails, a thick seat cushion, padded armrests with loose straps, an oval padded rest, 7, on an adjustable stem at the left arm, and crescent shaped padded rests, 7, on stems at the back and the front of the seat. A padded clamp sits on a bar above the back, curved braces, q, run down to the base, the frame stands on small screw feet, and a long low footboard, h, stands in front. Fig. 2 shows the same chair from the front, with the crescent rests raised on either side, the sliding bars and thumbscrews along the seat front, a drawer handle below, and the footboard between the legs. A scale bar runs beneath Fig. 1.

The plate number "Suppl. Pl. 3." is lettered vertically at the right, the section "Chirurgie." below the border, and the page number "146." at the lower left. The scale is lettered "Echelle de 2 Pieds de Roi" No engraver's mark is lettered at the lower right.

The Encyclopédie of Denis Diderot and Jean le Rond d'Alembert was accompanied by volumes of engraved plates, the Recueil de planches. In the Livorno edition published by Giuseppe Aubert the plate volumes appeared between 1771 and 1778, with a supplement volume of plates in 1778 to 1779, the source of this plate. The Chirurgie plates set out surgical instruments, bandages and apparatus, keyed to an explanation in the text volume.

The two chairs side by side make a strong landscape image, well suited to a wide frame above a desk or in a hallway.

Condition: Light uneven toning, browner toward the edges. Marked handling soiling along the bottom, left and right edges. Foxing over much of the margin. Slight wear at the bottom right and top left corners.

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.