James Watson, “The Revd. Mr Zachariah Mudge, Prebend of Exeter”, 1765, after Joshua Reynolds

James Watson (1730? –1790)

“The Revd. Mr Zachariah Mudge, Prebend of Exeter”, 1765

Edward Hamilton (1874) gives the following insights about the Reverend Zachariah Mudge: “Prebendary of Exeter; Vicar of St. Andrew's, Plymouth; author of an ingenious Essay for a New Version of the Psalms. Reynolds' earliest friend.” (p. 40; see digitised copy via Internet Archive: https://archive.org/details/catalogueraisonn00hamiiala/page/40/mode/2up)

Technical Details & Condition:

Mezzotint on fine 18th-century French laid paper. The sheet features a classic Auvergne countermarked structure: one half of the sheet bears the “T [Bell-Tower symbol] DUPUY FIN” watermark of the famous Thomas Dupuy paper mill, while the corresponding half displays the regional countermark “AUVERGNE 1742”. While the watermark bears the mandatory tax year of 1742, the paper itself dates between 1742 and the late 1780s due to prolonged regional use of the 1742 mould layout.

This sheet survives with generous full margins well beyond the platemark. This publication state was issued in London between 1765 and 1766 by the publishers Ryland & Bryer (William Wynne Ryland and Henry Bryer), after the celebrated oil portrait by Sir Joshua Reynolds (1723–1792).

The impression is strong, deep, and well-printed, beautifully retaining the rich, velvety black tones characteristic of a fresh mezzotint plate. Aside from minor, professional spot-touches to tiny dot breaks within the deep velvety areas of the mezzotint, the sheet is in very good condition—completely free of tears, folds, significant stains, or handling marks.

Dimensions:

• Sheet: 39.9 x 31.5 cm
• Platemark: 33.2 x 23 cm
• Image borderline: 28.1 x 23 cm

In-Plate Lettering (below the image borderline):

• Left: “Reynolds pinx^t.”
• Centre: “The Rev^d_ʺ M^r_ʺ Zachariah Mudge, Prebend of Exeter &c.&c. / Sold by Ryland & Bryer at the Kings Arms Cornhill.”
• Right: “Watson fecit.”

References:

• Edward Hamilton, A Catalogue Raisonné of the Engraved Works of Sir Joshua Reynolds, P.R.A., London, P & D Colnaghi and Co.: 1874 edition, p. 40 (for biographical details; see digitised copy via Internet Archive); see also the expanded 1884 edition, p. 52, state III
• Gordon Goodwin, “British Mezzotinters: Thomas Watson, James Watson and Elizabeth Judkins”, 1904, London, A H Bullen, pp. 81-208
• British Museum: Museum No. 1902,1011.6475 (https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/P_1902-1011-6475)

Price & Shipping:

AU$267 (approximately US$183,72 / €161.05 / £138.72), including worldwide express shipping. Import duties and taxes (if any) are the buyer’s responsibility.

To acquire this magnificent mezzotint—please contact oz_jim@printsandprinciples.com. Secure payment is handled via PayPal invoice for a smooth, protected transaction.

Adolphe Appian (born Jacques Barthélemy Appian) (1818–1898)

“Les Sources de l’Albarine (Ain)” or “The Springs of the Albarine (Ain)”, 1870

Technical Details & Condition:

Etching with delicate plate tone printed in dark brown ink on fine laid paper with small margins. This is an impression from the fifth and final state (Curtis & Prouté v/v) following the reduction of the copper plate. While the plate width was reduced from its initial size of approximately 43.8 cm down to 36.9 cm, comparison with early states shows that the internal image and borderline detail remain untouched; the reduction physically removed the wide plate margins that previously held the publication lettering. This print is after Appian’s own oil painting, Source de l'Albarine en Automne, which was exhibited at the Paris Salon of 1870.

The impression is richly inked and beautifully printed, maintaining crisp clarity in the dense foliage and reflection lines. Aside from two minuscule pinholes in the outer margin (likely inherent paper flaws from production) and a tiny brown spot in the lower margin, the sheet is in excellent condition—completely free of tears, folds, abrasions, significant stains, or handling marks.

Dimensions:

• Sheet: 22.8 x 39.8 cm
• Platemark (soft): 20.5 x 36.9 cm
• Image borderline: 19.4 x 30 cm

In-Plate Lettering:

• Upper left corner: “APPIA[N] / 1870”

References:

• Curtis & Prouté 29 v (Atherton Cutiis & Paul Prouté, “Adolphe Appian: son Œuvre Gravé et Lithographié”, Paris, Paul Prouté, 1968, cat. no. 29, state v)
• Jennings 26 (Herbert H. Jennings, "Adolphe Appian", The Print Collector’s Quarterly, vol. 12, no. 1, 1925, p. 115, cat. no. 26) — Digital copy viewable via the Heidelberg University Library (https://digi.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/diglit/print_collectors_quarterly1925/0134/scroll)
• Metropolitan Museum of Art (MET): Accession No. 63.704.10—Note: The Met holds a third state copy (https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/690949)
• British Museum: Museum No. 1873,0510.3454—Note: The British Museum holds a first state copy (https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/P_1873-0510-3454)

Price & Shipping:

AU$332 (approximately US$228.89/ €200.94 / £173.34), including worldwide express shipping. Import duties and taxes (if any) are the buyer’s responsibility.

To acquire this large and luminous impression—showcasing the mature printmaking skills of an artist central to the 19th-century etching revival and deeply aligned with the Barbizon School—please contact oz_jim@printsandprinciples.com. Secure payment is handled via PayPal invoice for a smooth, protected transaction.

This print has been sold 

Workshop of Thielman Kerver, “Maria says Goodbye to Her Mother”, circa 1505–1508

Workshop of Thielman Kerver (also known as Thielman I Kerver) (–1522)

“Maria says Goodbye to Her Mother”, circa 1505–1508

Technical Details & Condition:

A premium vellum leaf from the French Book of Hours “Horae B. Mariae Virginis — Hore dive virginis Marie secundum verum usum Romanum” (Hours of the Blessed Virgin Mary according to the true Roman custom) printed by Thielman Kerver in Paris.

The recto features a central woodcut—or possibly a metalcut, based on the extreme fineness of the line—surrounded by a pictorial woodcut border and Latin letterpress text printed in black and red. Initials are brilliantly highlighted with liquid gold leaf over hand-coloured red and blue backgrounds. The verso contains Latin letterpress text printed in striking black and red inks, framed within late-medieval woodcut marginalium panels. Initial letters in the main text are also hand-coloured in red and blue.

The finely executed illustration is a strong, crisp lifetime impression showing only minor signs of wear to the printing plate. The hand-painted initial letters present very minor, expected rubbing, and the vellum shows a beautiful natural age-toning. The leaf remains in excellent condition for its 500+ year age, entirely free of tears, holes, folds, or distracting stains.

Note: The attached angled photograph demonstrates the leaf's excellent structural integrity, catching the light to show the smooth, lustrous surface finish characteristic of premium, polished late-medieval Parisian vellum.

Context of the Relief Print:

This exceptional leaf captures an unusual iconographic scene drawn from the Apocryphal narrative of the Life of the Virgin Mary—her tender farewell to her mother, Saint Anne, prior to departing for the Temple or her betrothal to Joseph. Unlike standard, widespread scenes like the Annunciation or the Nativity, this intimate domestic moment highlights the late-medieval artistic shift toward humanising holy figures.

Produced at the absolute peak of the Parisian print Renaissance, Thielman Kerver’s workshop was globally celebrated for its complex geometric border panels and crisp typography. This specific leaf exemplifies early French book illustration at its finest, masterfully balancing dense letterpress text against vibrant, hand-illuminated capitals.

Dimensions:

• Sheet: 16.4 x 10.5 cm
• Image borderline: 12.4 x 7.9 cm

Letterpress Lettering & Translations:

• Recto: “Deus in adiutoriu[m] meu[m] intende. Domine / ad adiuvand[u]m me festina. Gloria patri & fi / lio[.] Sicut erat i[n] pri[n]cipio. an. Assu[m]pta e[st]. ps[almus]”
(Translation: “O God, come to my assistance. O Lord, make haste to help me. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son. As it was in the beginning. Antiphon: She has been assumed [The Assumption]. Psalm.”)
• Verso (upper text): “...tuum verum: & vnicum [filium]. Sanctum [quoque paraclitum spiritum] … In te, Domine, speravi: non confundar in aeternum. / Ad laudes.”
(Translation: “...Thy honorable, true, and only Son; Also the Holy Ghost, the Comforter... In thee, O Lord, have I trusted: let me never be confounded. / To Lauds.”)
• Verso (two side border panels): “Surge et acci / pe pueru[m] & ma / tre[m] ei[us] & fuge i[n] // egyptu[m]: et esto / ibi usq[ue] dū di / cā tibi Mat. 2”
(Translation: “Arise, and take the child and his mother, and fly into Egypt: and be there until I shall tell thee. Matthew 2.”)
• Verso (lower two base panels): “Ecce esau frater tu / us minatur ut occi / dat te. Genesis. [2]7 // Nisi saluaueris te / nocte hac cras mo / rieris. I. regum. 19.”
(Translation: “Behold, your brother Esau threatens to kill you. Genesis 27. // If thou save not thy life this night, tomorrow thou shalt be slain. 1 Kings 19 [Modern 1 Samuel].”)

References:

• Marie Berthail, “The First French Engravers: A Nascent Art of Book Illustration”, 1986, Nantes, Loire-Atlantique Departmental Museums, p. 88, cat. no. 33
• Chase Shepard, “08, Comparison of Two Books of Hours Printed by Thielman Kerver” (2018): https://archives.pdx.edu/ds/psu/31078
• Rijksmuseum: Object number RP-P-OB-21.165 (https://id.rijksmuseum.nl/200130040)

Price & Shipping:

AU$544 (approx. US$375.43 / €329.63 / £284.46), including worldwide express shipping. Import duties and taxes (if applicable) are the buyer’s responsibility.

To acquire this jewel of a double-sided vellum leaf from a Book of Hours—featuring a remarkably fine relief print depicting Mary holding the hand of her kneeling mother, Saint Anne—please contact oz_jim@printsandprinciples.com. I am happy to provide a secure PayPal invoice for a smooth, protected transaction.

This leaf has been sold