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Description: | bound volume (dimensions 54 x 38 x 7 cms) inscr. on plate b.c. "The Empress of China"; inscr. on plate b.r. "B. Lens Ex"; inscr. on page t.r. hand-written in brown ink "66" CRE LENS, Bernard II; (English; 1659-1725) PUB LENS, Bernard II; (English; 1659-1725) Part of William Hunter's original bequest, this is one of three volumes which together contain 488 mezzotints, almost all made or published by John Smith. About two thirds are portraits of eminent late Stuart, early Hanoverian persons. The remaining third are subject prints after a wide range of artists and subjects, from mythological and religious scenes after old Italian and Dutch and Flemish masters such as Titian and Rubens to fancy subjects after contemporary French and English painters.
Instrumental in raising the standard of mezzotint portraits, Smith was the first British printmaker to gain a European reputation, and examples of his work were essential for any serious first half of the 18th century European print collection. Hunter's set of volumes is a rare surviving example of a comprehensive collection of mezzotints compiled in the 1730s.
This print was published by Bernard Lens II who was a pioneering mezzotint engraver like Smith. The inclusion in this volume of almost 40 works by, attributed to or published by him provides some context to Smith's own prints. The subject has been identified as the actress Anne Bracegirdle in costume. Bracegirdle was famed for her beauty and several depictions of her in various exotic costumes appear in this volume, indicating that such images were in popular demand. | License: | http://www.hmag.gla.ac.uk/spirit/rights/ | Publisher: | Hunterian Museum and Art Gallery, University of Glasgow | Rights holder: | Hunterian Museum and Art Gallery, University of Glasgow | Subjects: | COSTUME PIECE : ETHNOGRAPHIC TYPE : EMPRESS : CHINA : CHINESE : HEADRESS : DECORATIVE : ROBE : MINIATURE PRINT : HUNTER VOLUME : | Source: | Hunterian Museum | Creator: | Hunterian Museum and Art Gallery, University of Glasgow | Identifier: | http://www.huntsearch.gla.ac.uk/cgi-bin/... | Language: | en-GB | Go to resource |
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