Prints and Principles

Most of the recent posts give details about individual prints and earlier posts discuss some of the subtle principles guiding artists in making images meaningful and memorable. For prints that are unsold, click "Items still available for sale" below. All other prints are no longer available. My contact email is oz_jim@printsandprinciples.com and my Instagram username is @printsandprinciples. I have created a separate blog to show my own work: https://printsandprinciplesjamesbrown.blogspot.com

Friday, 6 June 2025

Paulus Pontius, “Don Alvar Bazan”, 1630–1640, after Anthony van Dyck

Paulus Pontius (aka Paulus du Pont) (1603–1658)

“Don Alvar Bazan” (aka “Portret van de Commandant Don Álvaro de Bazán”; “Don Alvaro de Bazan Marquis of Santa Cruz”) —Spanish Admiral, Don Álvaro de Bazán y Benavides, II Marqués de Santa Cruz de Mudela, I Marqués de Viso (1571–1646), 1630–1640, from the series, “Icones Principum Virorum”, after Anthony van Dyck’s (aka Anthoni [Ridder] van Dijck; Anthony van Dijck; Antoon van Dijk; Anton van Dyck) (1599–1641) grisaille portrait now in the collection of the Duke of Buccleuch, Boughton House, Northamptonshire.

Engraving on fine laid paper, trimmed along the platemark and backed with a support sheet.

Size: (sheet) 23.3 x 17.3 cm; (image borderline) 21.9 x 16.9 cm.

Lettered in plate below the image borderline in three lines of Latin: “EXCELL.MVS D. DON. ALVAR. BAZAN ... / …/ … GVBERN.”; (left) “Paul. Pontius Sculp.”; (centre) “Ant. van Dyck pinxit”; (right) “Cum priuilegio”.

State iii (of v) before the addition of the initials of the publisher, Gillis Hendricx, in state iv.

Hollstein Dutch 54-3(5); New Hollstein Dutch 17-3(5); Mauquoy-Hendricx (van Dyck) 43-3(5); Van Someren 296.

The British Museum offers the following description of this print: “Portrait of Álváro de Bazán, Marqués de Santa Cruz, half-length in front of a fluted column, directed slightly to left, wearing armour and sash, and holding a baton in his left hand and resting his right on a visored helmet …” (https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/P_1863-0509-833 [BM inv. no. 1863,0509.833]).

See also the description of this print offered by the Rijksmuseum: https://id.rijksmuseum.nl/200245490.

Condition: a strong and well-printed (near faultless) impression, trimmed along the plate mark and laid onto a support of archival (millennium quality) washi paper providing generously wide margins. Beyond a minor brown mark at upper left and another near the figure’s right eye, the sheet is in an excellent condition with no tears, holes, folds, abrasions or significant stains.

I am selling this superb engraving with its eye-catching feature of the Admiral’s baton portrayed extending beyond the picture plane, for AU$304 (approximately US$197.58, EUR 172.62 or GBP 145.75), including express mail shipping worldwide. Import duties, if any, are the responsibility of the buyer.

If you are interested in purchasing this very fine impression of a masterwork of engraving, 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