Émile Rousseaux’s engraving, “La Marquise de Sevigné”, 1874, after Robert Nanteuil

Émile Rousseaux (aka Émile Alfred Rousseaux) (1831–1874)

“La Marquise de Sevigné” (aka “Oval Bust of Madame de Sévigné”; “Portrait of Marie de Rabutin-Chantal” [1626–1696]—an icon of 17th-century French literature for her letter writing), 1874, after the pastel portrait (dated 1666 on plate) in the Musée Carnavalet in Paris (see https://www.carnavalet.paris.fr/fr/collections/la-marquise-de-sevigne-1626-1696-0), by Robert Nanteuil (aka Robert Nantueil) (1623–1678), published in Paris as plate 76 by the Société Française de Gravure (1868–), printed by Charles Chardon aîné (fl. mid-1800s).

Engraving with etching on chine collé (China paper) on heavy wove (Lafuma Navarre Madagascar?) paper with wide margins.

Size: (sheet) 70.9 x 52 cm; (plate) 46.8 x 35.5 cm; (chine collé) 44.2 x 32.5 cm; (image borderline) 32.1 x 24.4 cm.

Inscribed on plate within the image borderline: (left) “R. Nanteuil pinxt 1666.”; (right) “E. Rousseaux sculpt 1874.”

Lettered and numbered on plate below the image borderline: (centre) “SOCIÉTÉ FRANÇAISE DE GRAVURE/ 76/ Imp. Ch. Chardon aîné, Paris.”

Béraldi 13 (Henri Béraldi 1891, “Les graveurs du 19e siècle; guide de l'amateur d'estampes modernes”, vol. 11, Paris, L. Conquet, p. 272, cat. no. 13 [see https://archive.org/details/lesgraveursdu19e11berauoft/page/272/mode/2up0]).

Henri Béraldi (1891) offers the following appraisal of this print:

 (Transl.) “A remarkable plate, and one that the engravers of the seventeenth century would not deny. — What they would disavow, for example, is the use of china paper glued on paste paper for printing!” (Planche remarquable, et que les graveurs du xvne siècle n( desavoueraient pas. — Ce qu'ils desavoueraient, par exemple, c'est l'emploi du papier de Chine colle sur papier pate pour le tirage!) (p. 272).

Condition: well-printed (near faultless) impression. The sheet is an excellent condition for its age and size with no tears, holes, folds, losses, significant stains or foxing.

I am selling this huge masterpiece of engraving—a true tour de force designed to establish the reputation of the engraver who sadly passed away prematurely in the same year that he executed the plate—for AU$267 (currently US$195.12/EUR164.48/GBP146.80 at the time of this listing) including Express Mail (EMS) 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 exceptionally beautiful engraving exemplifying the highest order of skill—to my eyes the level of skill is almost unbelievable! ...note for example the engraver’s ability to visually “explain" the curling flow of each hair in the marquise’s hurluberlu coiffure, the mathematical precision of rendering her widow’s attifet (headdress) and the transparently thin fabric of her bertha contrasting with the satin sheen of the bows—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 

Restoration of Robert Nanteuil’s engraving, “Marie Jeanne Baptiste de Savoie-Nemours”, 1678

BEFORE AND AFTER RESTORATION

Robert Nanteuil (aka Robert Nantueil) (1623–1678)

“Marie Jeanne Baptiste de Savoie-Nemours”, 1678, after Laurent du Sour (fl.1678), engraved for “Theatrum statuum regiae Celsitudinis Sabaudiae principis Regis” (Amsterdam, Blaeu, 1682).

Engraving on laid paper with restorations backed with a support sheet.

Size: (sheet) 43.2 x 29.4 cm; (soft plate approx. only) 39.5 x 25.8 cm; (image borderline) 38.8. x 24.8 cm.

Inscribed on plate with entwined initials at upper left and right corners and coat of arms below the portrait.

State ii? (of iii)

Lettered on plate within the image borderline on pedestal: (left) “Laurent du Sour pinx[it]”; (centre) “Marie Jeanne Baptiste de Sauoye/ Duchesse de Sauoye, Princesse de Piemont, Reyne de/ Chypre &c, Tutrice, et Regente &c/ pendant la Minorité de Son Fils.”; (right) “R. Nanteüil Sculp. 1678.”

Petitjean & Wickert 348.205 (Ch. Petitjean & Ch. Wickert 1925, “Catalogue de l'oeuvre gravé de Robert Nanteuil”, Paris); Adamczak 257–58.256

The British Museum and the Metropolitan Museum of Art offer description of this print:

https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/P_1864-1114-517;

https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/428745.

Condition: many restorations (see before and after photographs) and fractures to the margin. The sheet has been laid onto a support of archival (millennium quality) washi paper.

I am selling this very rare, large and important etching for AU$296 (currently US$210.99/EUR180.06/GBP164.13 at the time of posting this print) including Express Mail (EMS) 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 magnificent engraving (despite its restorations) 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

RESTORATION PROCESS:

1. The print is soaked in clean water for several days in the sun. No bleach or other chemicals are added and the “cleaning” is all achieved by the heat of the sun and UV.

2. Glue is prepared using (if one were to follow my method): 2 heaped soup-spoons of rice flour starch with an 18 cm squirt of Japanese archival glue (see photo) and blended in 500 ml of cold distilled water.

3.  The print is removed from the water and placed image down onto a sheet of cellophane. The prepared glue is then brushed carefully over the back of the sheet that is now supported by cellophane.

4. A support sheet of archival paper (I use a Chinese paper of the highest quality) that is larger than the print is placed onto a clean acrylic sheet and the archival paper is then brushed with the prepared glue until it is thoroughly soaked—ensuring that there are no air bubbles or creases.

5. Lifting the print using the cellophane backing, turn the print upside down with the cellophane still attached and position the print onto the still-wet-with-glue support sheet. Use a firm pressure applied to the back of the cellophane to laminate the print to the support sheet (I use a traditional gluing brush for this procedure).

6. Peel back the cellophane and mop up the residual glue using blotting/tissue paper.

7. Leave the support sheet attached by the residue glue on the acrylic sheet until it is thoroughly dry—about a week—and make any replenishment infilling (if required) using artist’s quality watercolour. Note that I needed to edit out a train of brown stains using W&N Titanium white blended to the colour and tone of the laid paper.

8. When the sheet is dry, remove it from the acrylic base using a palette knife.