Richard Earlom’s mezzotint with etching, “A Herb Market”, 1779, after Frans Snyders and Jan Boeckhorst

Richard Earlom (aka Henry Birche) (1743–1822)

“A Herb Market”, 1779, from the series, “Houghton Gallery”, after the intermediary drawing by Joseph Farington (1747–1821) after the painting in the Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg (inv. no. GE598) attributed to Frans Snyders (aka Senedre; Seneidre; Frans Snijders) (1579–1657) and Jan Boeckhorst (aka Johann Bockhorst; Jan Lange; John Long) (c.1604–1668), published in London by John Boydell (1719–1804) in 1779.

Mezzotint with stipple and etching on laid paper backed with a support sheet.                         

Size: (sheet) 46.6 x 62.6 cm; (plate) 41.5 x 57.5 cm; (image borderline) 35.7 x 57.9 cm.

Lettered on plate below the image borderline: (left) “Snyders & Long John Pinxerunt./ Joseph Farington delint./ Size of the picture, ^F6, ^I10 by ^F11, ^I2 in Length.”; (centre with text broken by the coat of arms, “FARI QUÆ SENTIAT”) “John Boydell excudit 1779/ A HERB MARKET./ In the Gallery at Houghton./ published Nov^r, 13^th. 1779 by John Boydell Engraver in Cheapside London.”; (right) “Rich^d. Earlom Scupsit.”

Lifetime impression of the published state by Boydell (1779).

Note that the British Museum has an early state of this print before the addition of mezzotint: https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/P_1867-0413-601.  

Wessely 111 (Joseph Eduard Wessely 1886, “Richard Earlom: Verzeichniss seiner Radirungen und Schabkunstblätter”, Hamburg, Haendcke & Lehmkuhl); Rubinstein 13 (Gregory M Rubinstein 1991, “Richard Earlom (1743–1822) and Boydell's Houghton Gallery”, “Print Quarterly”, Vol VIII, London).

The British Museum offers the following description of this print:

“Two women on the right, haggling over vegetables, while a small urchin pickpockets one of them; stacks of produce on the left and right, wagon and houses in the background, a horse sniffs at some cabbage from the far left; coat of arms at bottom; after Frans Snyders and Jan Boeckhorst; published state. 1779 Mezzotint with stipple and etching” (https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/P_1893-0612-93).

Condition: a superb impression showing very few signs of wear to the printing plate. Beyond minor issues in the margins (viz., the corners are rounded; there are pale marks and a fracture/tear on the upper edge), the sheet is in a very good condition for its considerable size and age, and it has been laid upon an archival support sheet of millennium quality washi paper.

I am selling this exceptionally rare and large masterwork of mezzotint, showing the full spectrum of tones from sparkling whites, translucent soft greys to the darkest of velvety blacks, for AU$597 (currently US$399.03/EUR361.05/GBP317.82 at the time of posting this listing) including postage and handling to anywhere in the world (but not, of course, any import duties/taxes imposed by some countries).

If you are interested in purchasing this amazingly detailed view of a green-market stand with what must be close to the full-range of produce farmed in the 1600s (based on the dates of the original painters who crafted the composition), please contact me (oz_jim@printsandprinciples.com) and I will send you a PayPal invoice to make the payment easy.

This print has been sold