Original Antique Print of a Chocolate-Drinking Creole Lady of Lima, Peru, c.1796
€ 349
Original antique · The actual sheet photographed · Certificate of authenticity on request · Sold unframed · Worldwide shipping from € 15 (rates)
Date
1796
Sheet size
40.8 × 25.7 cm (16.1 × 10.1 in)
Condition
Good
Reference
BG-14303-33
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
Good condition considering its age. General age-related toning, occasional foxing, and minor handling wear. Please review the images for further condition details.
About this sheet
A Creole lady of Lima drinking chocolate, an original copperplate engraving lettered "Española Criolla de Lima" and "Dame Créole du Pérou", numbered "N. 36" at the top. The lettering below the image credits the design and engraving to D. Juan de la Cruz ("delin. et sculp."). The old text places it in Giulio Ferrario's costume work Raccolta di Disegni delle più Interessanti Vestimenta delle Diverse Nazioni, published in Venice around 1796.
The woman stands on a tiled floor in a wide, ornate skirt with scrolling embroidery and several deep flounces edged in lace, a lace-sleeved bodice with a jeweled front, and a flowered headdress with a tall ornament. She holds a mancerina in her raised hand, the saucer with a ring that held the cup of hot chocolate, and her other hand is lowered at her side. At her feet are a chocolate pot on small legs and a cup with a spoon.
The mancerina was a Spanish-American vessel developed to keep hot chocolate from spilling, and chocolate drinking was an important ritual among the wealthy Creole families of colonial Lima.
