Two Portrait Heads, Physiognomical Study, Engraving, circa 1800

About this sheet

An original engraving with two portrait heads printed from two separate small plates on a single sheet, one above the other, in the manner of the physiognomical studies of the late eighteenth century. The lower plate is lettered at lower left "H.ff. Cop.", the abbreviation cop. indicating that it was copied from an earlier portrait. Neither sitter is named.

The upper plate, an upright oval, shows a young man with long, curling shoulder length hair, a broad white collar and a slightly sidelong glance, in the dress of the middle of the seventeenth century. The lower plate, a rectangle with rounded corners, shows an older man facing the viewer, with a close skullcap, long hair, a thin moustache and a deeply furrowed brow, wearing a wide white collar tied with tasseled strings. Set together, the youthful, open face and the stern, lined one invite comparison of character and age.

Prints of paired heads like this were made to illustrate the study of physiognomy, popularized by Johann Caspar Lavater, whose Physiognomische Fragmente appeared in 1775 to 1778 and was followed by French and English editions with hundreds of small engraved heads, many copied from older portraits. The careful hatching of the faces and collars and the dark, evenly worked backgrounds are typical of that work.

The engraving is crisp and well printed, with good contrast in the hair and shadows, and the two plates sit on a sheet with ample margins.

This is an interesting sheet for collectors of portrait prints, of the history of science and of seventeenth century costume. It frames well in a narrow molding with a tall mat and would suit a study, a library or a doctor's office.

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.