Red Wax Seal of the Fifteenth Century, Rouen, Antique Print, 1851
€ 220
Original antique · The actual sheet photographed · Certificate of authenticity on request · Sold unframed · Worldwide shipping from € 15 (rates)
Date
1851
Mapmaker / artist
Ferdinand Séré (draughtsman), Regamey (lithographer)
Publisher
Lacroix and Séré, Paris (printed by Lemercier)
Technique
Chromolithograph
Coloring
Printed in color
Condition
Good
Reference
BG-12228-4-33
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 age toning, a little darker toward the edges; occasional small spots in the margins. Please see the images.
About this sheet
This is an original antique chromolithograph, printed in strong vermilion red with a touch of green on a cream sheet, lettered "SCEAU EN CIRE ROUGE (XVe SIÈCLE) appendu à un titre en parchemin de la Bibliothèque de Rouen. (Fonds Leber.)" The two faces of the seal are shown side by side, joined by a green band. On the left a crowned king sits enthroned between two lions, holding a fleur de lis scepter and an orb; the legend round the rim reads in part "REX IERUSALEM SICILIE". On the right a knight in a crowned great helm rides at the gallop with raised sword, his shield and the horse trapper powdered with fleurs de lis, within a legend that includes "FILIUS REGIS FRACIE".
The caption translates as "red wax seal (fifteenth century), hanging from a parchment deed in the Bibliothèque de Rouen (Leber collection)." The running head reads "SIGILLOGRAPHIE", the study of seals, alongside the series title "LE MOYEN-AGE ET LA RENAISSANCE". The credits read "Ferdinand Séré del.", "Chromolith. Lemercier à Paris" and "Regamey, lith.", with "F. Séré direxit" below the caption.
Le Moyen Âge et la Renaissance was published in Paris in five volumes between 1848 and 1851. Paul Lacroix, who also wrote as the Bibliophile Jacob, edited the text, and Ferdinand Séré directed the illustrations, which is why his name and the word direxit stand beneath every plate. The work surveys the manners, crafts, sciences and arts of medieval and Renaissance Europe, and its chromolithographed plates record objects held around 1850 in churches, museums and private collections. This plate comes from the fourth volume, dated 1851, and belongs to its section on seals.
The strong red reads well against a pale mount, and the plate pairs naturally with other heraldic or seal subjects.
Condition: Light age toning, a little darker toward the edges; occasional small spots in the margins.
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.
