| Method | Etching |
| Artist | Thomas Landseer |
| Published | Thos. Landseer [c.1830] |
| Dimensions | Image 179 x 236 mm, Sheet 195 x 249 mm |
| Notes |
A rough cartoon, probably intended as one in a series of illustrations for an unknown publication. In the foreground of the scene, two figures sit at a table. An elderly bearded figure in a star-bordered robe, the probable protagonist of the work, gestures animatedly at a monk, who sits across from him, barefoot and dressed in a rough cowl tied with a large rosary. The rest of the scene is decorated with various objects of vertu, including gothic armour, death masks, skulls, works of Greek literature, Egyptian and Classical antiquities, and the skeleton of a large animal, perhaps an elephant or mammoth. The mysterious character of many of the objects, the prevalence of snakes and bats on many of the decorations, and the dejected pose of the monk, suggest the protagonist's fascination with the occult. Thomas Landseer (1793/94 - 1880) was a draughtsman, engraver and painter. He is best-known for his engravings and etchings of paintings by his youngest brother Edwin Landseer. Born in London, the eldest of fourteen children, Landseer was taught artistic techniques by his father, the engraver John Landseer. He then studied under the painter Benjamin Robert Haydon. He began etching aged fourteen, copying his brother's drawings; and continued to make etched copies of Edwin's works in later life. He produced satirical etchings for Monkeyana, or, Men in Miniature (1827), and dedicated his Characteristic Sketches of Animals (1832) to the Zoological Society. He also produced illustrations for Samuel Taylor Coleridge's Devil's Walk (1831). He exhibited paintings at the British Institution and the Royal Academy, and was elected an Associate of the latter in 1867. Condition: Trimmed within the plate and publication line. |
| Framing | unmounted |
| Price | £120.00 |
| Stock ID | 36182 |