G. P. R. James, Historical Novelist, Steel Engraving by Carl Mayer, circa 1850
€ 140
Original antique · The actual sheet photographed · Certificate of authenticity on request · Sold unframed · Worldwide shipping from € 15 (rates)
Date
circa 1850
Mapmaker / artist
Houghton (draftsman), Carl Mayer, Nuremberg (engraver)
Publisher
Chr. E. Kollmann, Leipzig
Technique
Steel engraving
Coloring
Uncolored
Sheet size
28 × 19 cm (11.0 × 7.5 in)
Condition
Fair
Reference
BG-14343-30
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
Fair to good condition for its age. Heavy foxing and brown staining to the margins, most marked at the right and lower edges; the portrait itself is largely clear. Please review the images for further condition details.
About this sheet
This steel engraved portrait shows the novelist G. P. R. James at bust length, turned to the left with his head lifted and his gaze directed past the viewer. He has thick, wavy dark hair swept up from the brow and short side whiskers, and wears a dark coat with broad lapels over a waistcoat, a black stock and a white shirt. The figure is set in a soft oval vignette of fine hatched tone, and the delicate stipple of the face contrasts with the bold lines of the coat.
The lower edge of the vignette carries two small credits, "Houghton gez." at left, naming Houghton as the draftsman, and "Carl Mayer sc. Nbg." at right, naming the Nuremberg engraver Carl Mayer. Beneath the portrait is the sitter's facsimile signature, "G. P. R. James", with the address "Maxpofle, Roxburghshire." engraved below it, and the foot of the sheet reads "Eigenthum von Chr. E. Kollmann in Leipzig", the publisher's mark of ownership.
George Payne Rainsford James (1799 to 1860) was one of the most prolific and popular historical novelists of his age, a follower of Walter Scott who produced dozens of romances, beginning with Richelieu in 1829, along with histories and biographies. He was appointed Historiographer Royal and later served as British consul in the United States and then in Venice, where he died in 1860. His books were widely translated, and German publishers in particular issued his work in large numbers, which explains the appearance of his portrait in a Leipzig publication.
Carl Mayer's Nuremberg workshop produced a great many steel engraved portraits and views for German publishers in the middle decades of the nineteenth century, and this plate shows the refined finish for which it was known. The facsimile signature and Scottish address give the portrait an attractive personal touch.
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.
