Gentleman with a Full Mustache, Engraved Portrait with R Monogram, circa 1890
€ 145
Original antique · The actual sheet photographed · Certificate of authenticity on request · Sold unframed · Worldwide shipping from € 15 (rates)
Date
circa 1890
Mapmaker / artist
Engraver's monogram R (unidentified)
Publisher
Not named on the sheet
Technique
Engraving
Coloring
Uncolored
Sheet size
35 × 25 cm (13.8 × 9.8 in)
Condition
Good
Reference
BG-14343-49
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
Good condition for its age. Plate mark visible. Light toning and scattered foxing to the margins; a small chip at the upper right edge and light soiling along the right edge. Please review the images for further condition details.
About this sheet
An original engraved portrait of an unnamed gentleman, printed in the center of a large sheet with a broad plate mark, and marked only with the engraver's monogram "R" at the lower right of the image. The sitter is not named on the sheet, and the print is offered for the quality of the engraving and the strength of the face.
The man is shown bust length in a vignette, turned slightly to the right, with thick swept back gray hair, a heavy drooping mustache and a lined, alert face. He wears a dark lounge jacket with notched lapels, a white wing collar shirt with a black bow tie and a dark waistcoat with a watch chain, the dress of a professional man of the late nineteenth century. The vignette fades softly into the paper on all sides, leaving wide clean margins.
The engraver has built up the face with a fine mesh of crossing lines and dots, varying their spacing to model the cheeks, brow and mustache, and has left the background in delicate open hatching that frames the head. Portraits of this kind were engraved for presentation, for commemorative publications and for the frontispieces of books, and were often printed on heavy paper with large margins so that they could be framed.
The clothing, with the short lounge jacket and bow tie, points to the 1880s or 1890s. Although the sitter's name has not survived on the sheet, the likeness is vivid and the engraving is of high quality, and the generous margins and clean plate mark make it a handsome portrait for a study, an office or a group of nineteenth century faces.
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.
