Le Chapeau de Brigand after Thomas Uwins, Steel Engraving by Walter, circa 1850
€ 175
Original antique · The actual sheet photographed · Certificate of authenticity on request · Sold unframed · Worldwide shipping from € 15 (rates)
Date
circa 1850
Mapmaker / artist
Thomas Uwins (painter, lettered 'Uwins pinxt.'), Walter (engraver)
Publisher
Not named on the sheet
Technique
Steel engraving
Coloring
Uncolored
Sheet size
24 × 17 cm (9.4 × 6.7 in)
Condition
Good
Reference
BG-14343-37
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. Narrow margins, trimmed close to the image border. Light toning to the margins; a small soft crease and light wear at the right corners. Please review the images for further condition details.
About this sheet
This original steel engraving reproduces Le Chapeau de Brigand, the painting by Thomas Uwins, RA, of a young girl in a tall plumed brigand's hat, a picture now in the collection of Tate Britain. The sheet is lettered "Uwins pinxt." at the lower left, where the first letter is lost to the trimmed margin, and "Walter sc." for the engraver at the lower right.
The girl is shown half length within an arched top, smiling out at the viewer with long ringlets falling to her shoulders. Her tall conical hat, fastened with a buckle, is trimmed with a sweeping peacock feather and dark ostrich plumes. A heavy embroidered cloak is wrapped around her over a white chemise with lace cuffs, and she holds a rosary of dark beads from which a crucifix hangs. The engraver has given the plumage, the lace and the folds of the cloak a remarkable range of texture against the dark ground.
Thomas Uwins (1782 to 1857) spent several years in Naples and Rome in the 1820s, and Italian peasant subjects of this kind made his reputation after his return to England. Le Chapeau de Brigand was exhibited in 1839 and is regarded as one of his best pictures. Uwins was elected a Royal Academician in 1838 and served as Keeper of the National Gallery from 1847 to 1855.
Steel engravings after paintings by members of the Royal Academy were published in great numbers in the middle of the nineteenth century for illustrated periodicals and gift books, and the hard steel plate allowed detail as fine as the feathers here to survive a long printing. This impression is strong, with deep blacks in the hat and background.
The sheet has been trimmed close to the image border. It makes a charming picture for a bedroom, a sitting room or a study, and it would frame well with a narrow molding and a wide mat.
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.
