Katharineberg Copper Mine, Sweden, Hand Colored Steel Engraving, circa 1840
€ 100
Original antique · The actual sheet photographed · Certificate of authenticity on request · Sold unframed · Worldwide shipping from € 15 (rates)
Date
circa 1840
Mapmaker / artist
Kunstanstalt des Bibliographischen Instituts, Hildburghausen (engraving studio)
Publisher
Bibliographisches Institut, Hildburghausen
Technique
Steel engraving
Coloring
Hand colored
Condition
Good
Reference
BG-13194-134
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 wear to the bottom left and bottom right corners. Age toning; handling soiling along the edges and foxing with some brown staining in the margins. Printed image clean.
About this sheet
A dramatic view down into the workings of a copper mine in Sweden. Great overhanging masses of rock, streaked in greens, browns and rust, frame a deep open pit, and long timber beams and ladders bridge the gulf from side to side. High above, small figures cross a wooden gantry against the sky, while the far wall of the excavation glows pale in the light.
Lower down, miners in red and blue jackets work on rough plank platforms. One hauls on a rope, another pushes a wheelbarrow at left, and two more emerge from a dark opening at the bottom. Ladders climb the rock faces, and a hoisting rope hangs down the center of the shaft.
The lettering, in German, reads Kupfermine Katharineberg in Schweden, the copper mine of Katharineberg in Sweden, with the plate number CCXXXIX at upper right. The lines below state that it came from the art institute of the Bibliographisches Institut in Hildburghausen and is the property of the publishers. The institute issued Meyer's Universum, a long series of steel engraved views with accompanying text, which includes an essay on these mines. The Roman numeral at the top corner is the plate number within that series.
It is a steel engraving, colored by hand in strong earthy tones that bring out the strata of the rock and the bright jackets of the miners.
An unusual industrial subject for a study, an office or a collection of mining and geology prints, framed in dark wood.
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.
