Fatehpur Sikri, Hilltop Palace above a Lake, Antique Steel Engraving, 1859

€ 240

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

Date: 1859
Mapmaker / artist: Published by Gebroeders Kraay
Publisher: Gebroeders Kraay, Amsterdam
Technique: Steel Engraving
Coloring: Uncolored
Condition: Good
Reference: BG-00114-15

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 handling wear to the bottom left and top right corners; edges straight and without nicks. Even age toning. No foxing noted in the margins.

About this sheet

An original antique steel engraving, uncolored, titled "FUTTYPORE SICRI." On a ridge at the upper right stands a long palace with a battlemented roofline and small domed kiosks, dominated by a tall square tower with arched windows. A great flight of steps climbs the hillside toward it, and further buildings and a tower show among the trees on the left. In the middle distance low walls, a ruined building and a domed pavilion line the shore, with a camel and a line of figures on the road at the right. In the foreground two figures sit on a grassy mound, while four men stand in the shallow water of the lake, one bending to fill a vessel. Large trees frame both sides of the view.

The plate is lettered below the image in Dutch: "FUTTYPORE SICRI.", which translates as "Fatehpur Sikri". Beneath the caption, in a small script, is the publisher's imprint "Uitg. Gebrs Kraaÿ, Amsterdam.", short for uitgegeven (published) by the Kraay brothers of Amsterdam. No artist or engraver is named on the plate.

The source is Britsch-Indië, beschreven naar de nieuwste bronnen by A. van Otterloo (Amsterdam, Gebroeders Kraay, 1859), the Eerste Deel of the series Vreemde Landen en Volken, a set of books on foreign countries and their peoples. Its title page promises Met Vier-en-Twintig Staalgravuren en eene Kaart, that is, with twenty-four steel engravings and a map, and this plate is one of those engravings.

Fatehpur Sikri was built by the emperor Akbar in the late sixteenth century as his capital near Agra. The reflective water and layered hillside give the plate a pleasing depth for a living room or study wall.

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.