Der gemeine Kaiman (Common Caiman) - Hand-Colored Zoological Print, Circa 1840

€ 290

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

Date: 1840
Sheet size: 30 × 38.5 cm (11.8 × 15.2 in)
Condition: Good
Reference: BG-12678-145

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

The condition of this print is good for its age, with clean lines and vivid colors. Minor foxing and slight discoloration around the edges are present, consistent with prints of this period, but the central image remains well-preserved and vibrant.

About this sheet

Der gemeine Kaiman, a hand-colored lithograph of about 1840 from a German natural history series. The title "Der gemeine Kaiman" and the scientific name "(Alligator lucius Cuv.)" are printed beneath the image, with a paragraph of German text below.

The animal is drawn in profile, resting on a bank among tall grasses with its jaws wide open to show its teeth, dark green back covered with horny scales, pale underside and a long tail ridged with crests. A line of water with a few green leaves lies in the foreground, and the grasses are tinted in pale green and yellow. The German text describes the head, the teeth, the scaly back and the tail, and gives the length as 14 feet.

Alligator lucius was the name Cuvier gave to the American alligator, the large crocodilian of the rivers and swamps of the southern United States, which German natural history books of the period called a Kaiman. The same series included other large American animals, such as the bison.