Antique Tapir & Bear Zoological Engraving – Bertuch, c. 1800

€ 250

Original antique · The actual sheet photographed · Certificate of authenticity on request · Sold unframed · Worldwide shipping from € 15 (rates)

Date: 1800
Sheet size: 34 × 26 cm (13.4 × 10.2 in)
Condition: Good
Reference: BG-14336-151

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

Wear consistent with age and use. Good antique condition with overall age-related toning, scattered foxing and spotting and some visible show-through or offsetting from printed text. Several small brown stains and marks are visible, particularly toward the lower right.

About this sheet

Two large quadrupeds on one plate, an original hand-colored copper engraving from Friedrich Justin Bertuch's Bilderbuch für Kinder, published in Weimar around 1800. The engraver's signature, "L. Rieder sc.", is at the lower left, and the plate mark "XX. B. 1" is at the lower right. It is mounted in a cream mat.

The data identifies Figure 1 as a South American tapir, and Figure 2 as a bear. In the image, Figure 1 at the top is a dark brown, short-legged animal in profile with a small ear and a pale muzzle, standing on a patch of grass. Figure 2 below is a massive bear with a gray-black coat and a paler head and muzzle, walking to the right on a grassy mound. Both are drawn with soft shading and only a ground line for setting.

Bertuch's Bilderbuch für Kinder, begun in 1790, set familiar and newly described animals from different parts of the world side by side for young readers, and this plate follows that scheme. The lowland tapir is native to the Amazon basin and tropical South America.