Japanese Rockfish, Antique Perry Expedition Fish Lithograph, 1856
€ 275
Original antique · The actual sheet photographed · Certificate of authenticity on request · Sold unframed · Worldwide shipping from € 15 (rates)
Date
1856
Mapmaker / artist
James Carson Brevoort, with the figures drawn by the artists of the United States Japan Expedition
Publisher
Published by order of the Congress of the United States, Washington
Technique
Lithograph
Coloring
Printed color
Sheet size
22 × 29.5 cm (8.7 × 11.6 in)
Condition
Good
Reference
BG-14475-2-2
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
Light uneven toning, browner toward the edges. Handling soiling along the left and right edges. All four corners complete.
About this sheet
This is an original antique lithographed plate of Japanese fishes from the official report of Commodore Perry's expedition to Japan, the fourth plate of its natural history series. Two figures of the marbled rockfish Sebastes marmoratus fill the plate in color, numbered one and two and lettered in Latin at the foot, under the heading of the United States Japan Expedition and Natural History Plate the fourth. The drawing is credited to H. Patterson.
This sheet comes from Notes on some Figures of Japanese Fish by James Carson Brevoort, issued with the official account of Commodore Perry's expedition to Japan, Washington, 1856. The drawings were made on the spot from fresh fish by the expedition artists, which is why the colors are those of a living animal rather than a faded museum specimen. The drawing on this plate is credited to H. Patterson.
Showing the same species twice is deliberate: the rockfishes vary so much in color and marking that a single figure would have misled the naturalist reading the report. That practical scientific purpose is part of what makes the Perry plates interesting beyond their looks. The plates frame well in a simple pale frame and look well in a run of two or three along a hallway, a kitchen or a bathroom wall.
Light uneven toning, browner toward the edges. Handling soiling along the left and right edges. All four corners complete.
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.
