Brunn, Isaac.MareMagnum
10.941 Ergebnisse
52,1 x 39 cm. Copperprint engraving on paper (two conjoined sheets). Beautiful copy of the famous south-west view of the Strasbourg Cathedral by Daniel Specklin from 1566. Some minor changes to the original print concern small architectural changes to the building itself, such as the helmet of the ridge turret, the staffage figures, and the monumental cartouche with the text, marking the transition from late Renaissance to early Baroque ornaments. The German text offers a partly legendary building history of the famous north tower. An additional text directly underneath the seam of the two sheets is a dedication to the dignitaries of the city: “Nobilissimis, amplissimis, prudentissimis Dominis, D. D. Praetoribus, Consulibus, Reliquisq[ue] inclusae Argentinae Senatoribus, Patribus Patriae, Patriam hanc turrim humiliter offert, consecrat, dedicat Isaac Brunn Argentine(n)sis chalkiographos A(nn)o 1615”. - Born in Strasbourg, Isaac Brun (1596-1669) worked primarily as a portraitist and book illustrator. - Upper margin somewhat brittle and with several tears, one larger tear showing traces of unprofessional restoration. Right border of the cartouche chafed. With a pinch fold affecting the dedication and a restored tear affecting the image in the lower right margin. Trimmed on the upper and lower margins, some browning. Thieme/Becker V, 121 (biography). Drugulin I, 291.
3 Bleistiftzeichnungen (230 x 285 - 235 x 365 mm), 1 Ölzeichnung (190 x 200 mm) und 1 Druckgraphik (225 x 305 mm). Wasserzeichen teils "J. Whatman 1832". Unter 3 Passepartouts. Hübsche, sehr sorgfältig ausgeführte Studien einiger Grabplatten in einer nicht ermittelten gotischen Kathedrale, darunter die eines Bischofs sowie eines wohl adeligen Ehepaars (letztere datiert 1639). Wohl Vorzeichnungen zu einer Malerei, dazu ein handschriftlicher Kommentar: "Der Stein sehr warm und die Wappen kalte Glanzlichter". Die Druckgraphik zeigt den Kirchenraum mit einem von einer Säule teilweise verdeckten Epitaph und zwei Rosettenfenstern. - Wohlerhalten.
Seidendruck auf Papier aufgezogen. 143:215 mm. Auf Kartonträger (250:330 mm) montiert. Verso der Sammlungsstempel "F.G.M." mit Grafenkrone.
255 x 180 mm. Copperprint engraving, cut, hand-coloured and dressed with several fabric fragments, some with metallic threads, metallic lace details, and ground glass. Stitched at an early date to a ruled paper mount. Later giltwood frame and glazing with framer’s label ("Collard Doreur sur bois. Versailles’", ca. 1830-40). Striking and well-preserved example of a so-called "dressed print", based on a devotional engraving of Mary Magdalene by the German engraver and publisher Martin Engelbrecht (1684-1756), dating to the mid-18th century. The materials and style of the adornments point to the 18th century, though a later reuse of older fabrics cannot be ruled out. As often, the dressing has been ingeniously applied both under and over the surface of the original engraving. The penitent Mary Magdalene has been modified by being pasted onto glazed paper, producing a dramatic black-sky background, her body is embellished with three different brocade fabrics (two with metallic threads), and the print was further enhanced with hand-colouring, some metallic lace and ground glass. The saint is characterized by her traditional attributes of a cross, a book, a myrrh jar, a straw mat, and a skull, while her left foot rests on a globe or orb. The precious clothes that were added to Mary Magdalene, who is usually just covered by her long open hair as an expression of her ascetism and atonement, almost transforms her into a celestial Mary, thus altering the meaning of the engraving. - The fashion for dressing prints existed probably from the beginning of printed illustrations themselves, though it was a widespread, predominantly female recreation, especially in nunneries and convents, during the 17th and 18th centuries. Dressed prints were often overlooked by art historians and, due to their fragile nature, are rarely preserved in such good condition.
Ca. 114 x 160 cm (map size; visible size ca. 131.5 x 177.5 cm). Engraved. Framed and glazed in broad burl wood veneer frame with insignificant damage (141 x 187.5 cm). Monumental reconstructive map of ancient Syracuse and its surroundings from Vincenzo Mirabella e Alagona's famous 1613 publication "Dichiarazioni della pianta dell'antiche Siracuse", dedicated to Philip III of Spain, King of Sicily. The map covers a large area, roughly from the island Ortygia, the historical centre of Syracuse, to the Euryalus fortress, and from the source of the river Ciane to the so-called House of Archimedes, and shows often fantastical renderings of such important monuments as the Temple of Apollo, the Greek and Roman theatres, and the ancient quarries called Latomie, including a staffage of fantastical ships. - The ornamental border, featuring reproductions of the obverse and reverse of 39 Greek coins, was specially engraved and described for the publication. Many of the coins of the notorious tyrant Dionysius I of Syracuse and subsequent rulers show the famous triskelion composed of three bent knees, a symbol which today forms part of the flag of Sicily. The dedication of the book to Philip III of Spain is repeated in an inscription with the title of the map and the name of its author. The dedicatee is also represented by the monumental coat of arms in the upper right corner of the map. The nine copperplate engravings are signed by the otherwise unknown Francesco Lomia from Syracuse and are dated 1612, but the plates were published with the book in 1613. - Vincenzo Mirabella e Alagona (1570-1624) was a historian, archaeologist, and architect from Syracuse. He married into one of the leading families of the city, held public offices, and realized several building projects, such as the Theatine Church of San Andrea and the renewal of the cathedral square. In 1608 he accompanied Caravaggio on several visits to the Latomie. The painter subsequently coined the name “Ear of Dionysius” for one of the ancient quarries, which is still in common use. - Generally well preserved, with small chafed areas to some plates, one of which with hand-drawn additions, and some stains.
271 x 208 mm. Blue ballpoint on laid paper. Portrait of the Swiss publisher Albert Skira (1904-76), dated and inscribed with the dedication: "Pour ces 25 ans d'éditions et 30 Ans d'Amitié. Picasso". The expressive profile of Skira, including parts of his shoulders and one arm, is representative of Picasso's sketchy and graphic art oriented late style. It is the last of seven numbered portraits of the publisher that Picasso drew on the evening of 16 September 1953 in the booth of a restaurant in Golfe-Juan. - Skira "played an important role in Picasso's life in that in the fall of 1930 he commissioned him to illustrate Ovid's Metamorphoses. Picasso achieved surrealist transformations in an admirably classical graphic style [...]. This was one of the reasons that led Vollard to commission him to produce what was to become the Vollard Suite. Skira subsequently offered him another opportunity by creating, in 1933, the splendid magazine 'Minotaure': for the cover of the first issue, Picasso created a virtuoso collage" (cf. Pierre Daix, Dictionnaire Picasso). - With original fold mark and insignificant tears in the fold. An unrelated note in ink on the verso reads: "Vauthier baryton".
Ca. 676 x 480 mm to 755 x 523 mm. Coloured etchings on paper. Partly heightened in gold and silver. Two of the prints mounted on canvas. Rare supraporte prints from the famous publishing house Remondini, depicting four episodes from the biblical Parable of the Prodigal Son. In the sequence of the biblical narrative, the etchings with legends in Spanish and Latin show the Prodigal Son collecting his share of the inheritance from his father, the Prodigal Son leaving the parental home, the Prodigal Son being reduced to serve as a swineherd after he squandered his fortune, and the reconciliation with his father following his desperate return home. The beautiful coloured etchings are wholly Rococo in style, from the large ornamental frames to the opulent clothing of the protagonists and decor within the scenes. Embracing the timeless character of a parable, the 18th century viewers were supposed to identify with the protagonists and have their taste in Rococo ornaments met. - The house of Remondini was founded in Bassano del Grappa by the merchant Giovanni Antonio Remondini (1634-1711) and was successfully expanded by his son Giuseppe Remondini (1672-1742). Apart from prints and books, Remondini produced decorated papers for various uses and wallpapers. In the 18th and early 19th centuries, Remondini was among the largest print publishers of Italy. The supraportes with the Prodigal Son are a beautiful example of the large portfolio of the company and its international market. - With occasional stains and some foxing. The return scene shows old restorations due to water damage, leaving some areas brittle, especially in the lower margin, and causing minimal losses to the print. The departure scene shows two small defects.
Ca. 167:128 mm. Kupferstich. Paginiert und mit gest. Numerierung "32". Montiert auf Trägerpapier (323:476 mm). Bukolische Szene mit einer kleinen Ziegenherde, im Hintergrund ein lagernder Hirte, im Vordergrund eine von einem Gebüsch zupfende Ziege, signiert "C. Saft Leven". - Mit Stempel der "Graphischen Sammlung" von Georg Denzel (1873-1959), unter Sammlungsnr. "3195 Nr. G" aufgenommen. Die Graphik zudem verso mit Sammlungsstempel des Prof. Wilhelm Denzel "G + W D". - Leicht braunfleckig.
52,8 x 37 cm. Woodcut on paper (two conjoined sheets). Rare pirated copy of the famous south-west view of the Strasbourg Cathedral by Daniel Specklin (1536-1589). A "Matthias Huebner" from Schneeberg in Saxony, who is presented as the author of the print in the modified text in the strapwork frame to the right ("Matthias Huebner Schnebergensis faciebat Argent. Cal. Ian M. D. LXVI"), has not been identified. The monumental view of the Cathedral, including the staffage figures and the strapwork cartouche with the date, correspond with the original published by Bernhard Jobin in Strasbourg (as depicted in Hollstein). - Trimmed, insignificant marginal damage, two restored tears on the left. Smoothed, slightly soiled, somewhat toned. Hollstein LXXIII, 67, 1 (with illustration on p. 66). Strauss, German single-leaf woodcut, III, S. 975, I (of II; with fig. II). Cf. Passavant III, p. 350f. Drugulin I, 290f. Bartsch IX, 303, 1.
Ca. 477 x 326 mm (neat line). Etching on paper. Only known specimen of an anonymous copy after Georg Daniel Heumann’s monumental 1735 copper print engraving based on a design by Salomon Kleiner, with additional portraits of Empress Maria Theresa and the later Emperor Joseph II and his wife. This faithful, though qualitatively inferior copy was probably made on the occasion of the wedding of Archduke Joseph of Austria and Princess Isabella of Parma on 6 October 1760 in Vienna. The couple is shown in a double portrait presented by a crowned eagle flying on the right side of the tower. They are opposed by a similarly presented profile portrait of Maria Theresa on the left side. Superimposed, the two medallion-bearing eagles would form the double-headed Habsburg eagle. - Joseph's first and happiest marriage lasted only three years, as Isabella died of smallpox on 27 November 1763 at the age of 21, leaving behind a devastated widower. 1763 is thus the latest possible date for the creation of this beautiful etching. - Good impression with some minor stains and a larger brown stain to the upper left margin.
Handkolorierter Kupferstich (100 x 120 mm), Blattmaß 125 x 193 mm. Unter Passepartout. Hübsche Ansicht der Brunnenstube, die im Zuge des Baus der Albertinischen Wasserleitung 1804 in der Nähe der Otto-Wagner-Villa in Wien-Hütteldorf errichtet wurde. Tafel Nr. 49 aus dem 1812 von Maria Geissler publizierten Ansichtenwerk "Collection de vues des principaux palais, eglises, bâtimens publies, campagnes & jardins tant de Vienne [...]". Mit Legende in deutscher und französischer Sprache sowie der seltenen Verlagsadresse "Graben No. 1200". - Die Albertinische Wasserleitung war das erste Wasserleitungsprojekt in der Geschichte der Wiener Wasserversorgung mit weiträumig angelegtem Rohrnetz. Sie wurde 1804 fertiggestellt und bis 1890 betrieben. Cf. Nebehay/Wagner 193.
Ca. 135:145 mm. Strichätzung. Montiert in Passpartout-Sammelmappe (ca. 240:320 mm). Bukolische Szene mit zwei Schafen und einer Ziege neben einem Zaun sowie einem Hirten in Rückenansicht im Hintergrund. Signiert "K DU J f". - Leicht braunfleckig und knittrig. Mit Stempel der "Graphischen Sammlung" von Georg Denzel (1873-1959) unter Sammlungsnr. "2515 Nr. 9" aufgenommen.
Seidendruck auf Papier aufgezogen. 167:247 mm. Verso der Sammlungsstempel "F.G.M." sowie eine handschriftliche Paraphe.
Ca. 237:160 mm. Radierung mit gest. Nummer "3". Montiert auf Trägerpapier (480:320 mm). Ein altes Pferd und ein totes Pferd, im Hintergrund nähert sich eine Hyäne, signiert "Paulus Potter f". - Mit Stempel der "Graphischen Sammlung" von Georg Denzel (1873-1959), unter Sammlungsnr. "3078 Nr. G" aufgenommen. Zudem verso mit Sammlungsstempel "G + W D" des Prof. Wilhelm Denzel. - Leicht braunfleckig.
Ca. 280:225 mm. Kupferstich. Mmit gest. Seitenzahl "Pag. 20". Montiert auf Trägerpapier (480:320 mm). Zu der Textstelle aus "Reineke Fuchs": "Wie Henning, der Hahn, höchst betrübt vor den König kommt, über Reineke klagt und die Missetat desselben beweist [...]" (nach Soltau I, 4, 1-48; vgl. Goethe I, 181). - Ramberg radierte die Illustrationen für "Reineke Fuchs" selbst nach seinen großformatigen Federzeichnungen und veröffentlichte sie als eigenständiges Werk im Selbstverlag "Reineke Fuchs. In 30 Blättern gezeichnet und radirt" (Hannover 1826). - Etwas stockfleckig, verso eine kleine Stelle mit Papier hinterlegt. Mit Stempel der "Graphischen Sammlung" von Georg Denzel (1873-1959), unter Sammlungsnr. "2351 Nr. O" aufgenommen.
Ca. 107:80 mm. Radierung. Montiert auf Trägerpapier (480:320 mm). Bukolische Szene mit einem liegenden Esel, einem stehenden Esel und einem weiteren Esel, dessen Kopf seitlich in das Bild ragt; im Hintergrund ein lagernder Hirte. Die Platte gestochen von einem Mitglied der Künstlerfamilie Audran in Paris, signiert "Herman Swanevelt fecit". - Leicht braunfleckig, mit Lochspur alter Heftung. Mit Stempel der "Graphischen Sammlung" von Georg Denzel (1873-1959) unter Sammlungsnr. "2802 Nr. G" aufgenommen. Zudem verso mit Papiermarke und Sammlungsstempel "G + W D" des Prof. Wilhelm Denzel.
Ca. 379:288 mm. Kupferstich. Mit gest. Untertitel "t'Amsterdam gedruckt Frederick de Widt, voor aan inde Calverstraet bi den Dam, Inde Witte Pas-Caarts". Montiert auf Trägerpapier (480:320 mm). Szene in einem Stall mit zwei Pferden und einem Stallburschen, der ein drittes Pferd sattelt. Nach dem Gemälde "Zwei Pferde im Stall" von Pieter de Laer (Bayerische Staatsgemäldesammlung, Alte Pinakothek München). Wie dem Untertitel zu entnehmen, wurde es von dem Kartographen Frederik de Wit (1629-1706) gedruckt. - Mit Stempel der "Graphischen Sammlung" von Georg Denzel (1873-1959), unter Sammlungsnr. "3214 Nr. 4" aufgenommen. Zudem verso mit Sammlungsstempel "G + W D" des Prof. Wilhelm Denzel.
Two coloured engravings, ca. 195 x 135 and 205 x 120 mm (neatline) on 4to and oblong 4to. Copperprint engraving and gouache on paper. With gouached border. Charming views of the famous monuments, bearing testimony to the continuous interest in the "Torre pendente di Pisa" that is shown in both prints. The engraver Ranieri Grassi is exclusively known for his vedutas of Pisa, the city's monuments, and their interiors. - The view of the Leaning Tower has an insignificant pinch fold affecting the print and a more extensive edge tear. Three edges bent.
Kl.-Folio (280:220 mm). Album mit zus. 32 Zeichnungen auf 27 Bll. Die Zeichnungen im Postkartenformat (90:120 mm) teilweise in Blei aquarelliert und teilweise mit Tusche laviert, mit Motiven meist aus den Niederlanden, Flandern und Frankreich, zumeist monogr. "ES", jeweils flächig montiert und mit Goldlinien gerahmt. Lederband der Zeit mit goldgepr. Deckeltitel "Reise Erinnerungen 1887", gepr. Rücken und dreiseitigem Goldschnitt; Vorsatzpapiere aus goldbedrucktem Karton mit feinem ornamentalen Muster. 1 Messingschließe. Die Zeichnungen, ausgeführt von einem geübten Zeichner und jeweils beschriftet und datiert, dokumentieren die Stationen einer Reise: Nijmegen, Kampen, Enkhuizen, Ursem bei Alkmaar, Rotterdam, Utrecht, Antwerpen, Brügge, Brüssel, Mecheln, Tournai, Laon, Soissons, Paris, Rouen, Versailles, Chinon, Fontainebleau, Sully sur Loire und Moulins. - Der Künstler mit dem verschlungenen, wohl als "ES" zu lesenden Monogramm konnte nicht ermittelt werden; vermutlich trug er den Nachnamen Schmidt: Darauf deuten drei beiliegende Photokopien, die wohl die Rückseiten von drei der Zeichnungen zeigen, die als Postkarten an einen Carl Schmidt in Berlin versandt wurden. - Bis auf eine Bleistiftzeichnung mit Allgäuer Gebirgslandschaft, bezeichnet und datiert "Mädelegabel, 15. 8. [18]86", entstanden alle Zeichnungen auf der Reise durch die Niederlande, durch Flandern und Fankreich. Der Spruch "Wie hat das Gott so schön erdacht, dass er den Wanderburschen schafft" unter der Zeichnung von Kampen zu Beginn der Reise deutet darauf hin, dass die Reise zu Fuß angetreten wurde. - Der Zeichner versteht sich meisterhaft auf die minutiöse Wiedergabe von Stadtansichten und historischen Gebäuden; oft beleben treffend skizzierte Staffagefiguren den Vordergrund, oder die Landschaft ist in zarten Aquarellfarben angedeutet. Ein Selbstportrait zeigt den Künstler auf einem kleinen Schemel hockend, mit Zylinder auf dem Kopf, in der Pariser Avenue de Montaigne; ein anderes Selbstportrait, durch einen Spiegel in der Decke gesehen, entstand im Schloss von Fontainebleau. - Einband etwas berieben. Einige Zeichnungen mit Poststempel oder Abklatschspuren eines Poststempels. Innengelenke gebrochen, gering fleckig, Trägerkartons leicht gebräunt.
33 x 23 cm (sheet size). Gouache on paper. Heightened in gold and silver. Charming, if amateurish, anonymous representation of Napoleon Bonaparte as Consul, based on reproductions of an original portrait by the general and military painter Louis Albert Guislain Bacler d'Albe (1761-1824). The official engraved version of d'Albe's portrait by Michelangelo Mercoli the younger circulated widely in Europe and was frequently reproduced and varied. In the gouached copy at hand, Napoleon's typical bicorne hat was added, either based on the concrete model or as an original idea of the copyist. This artistically rather unhappy addition is an interesting reminder of the immediate iconicity of Napoleon's hat. The inscription "N. Bonaparte P.er Consul de la République Française" corresponds exactly to Mercoli's print. - Well preserved. With minor tears and browning to the margins.
Large 4to (180 x 255 mm). 24 watercolours on 22 ff. With several additional pencil sketches. Original black half leather with green cloth covers and pen holder. Impressive album of vibrant watercolours documenting the extensive Ceylonese journey of a female British artist, Frances de la Poer. The volume opens with a depiction of a "Madras Conjurer" in Kandy, performing the "great mango trick" with two cobras, wherein the performer gives the illusion of the sudden germination and growth of a mango tree (drawn from life and dated Kandy, 31 Dec. 1895). The second drawing shows a crowd gathered before a Buddhist temple in Kandy. - Setting out from Kandy, the artist explored the countryside, drawing landscapes in Yattawatta, the tea harvest on Coolbawn estate in Navalapitiya, a pandal in Bandarawala, the surroundings of Haldummulla, a verandah in Pelmadulla, two views of Adam's Peak, men riding elephants in Ratnapura, the famous Elephant Rock (Ethagala) of Kurunegala, and four impressions from the beaches of Bentota. The final watercolour in the album is a beautiful impression of a beach sunset, dated 18 February 1896. - Frances de la Poer (ca. 1850-1925) was the youngest daughter of the Irish nobleman John William de la Poer (1816-51). In 1881 she married Thomas William Gaston Monsell, 2nd Baron Emly, son of the liberal politician William Monsell. - Spine professionally restored; generally well preserved. Album bought from Roberson & Co., London, with his ticket to front pastedown.
325 x 280 mm. Ink and wash on drawing cardboard. Framed and glazed. This beautiful study, most likely for a lithograph, can be attributed to Carle Vernet, the youngest son of the painter Claude-Joseph Vernet. The monumental central motif of an Arabian cavalier on a dark Arabian stallion is elaborately executed, whereas the backdrop of a tent and a battle scene remain sketchy. - A passionate horseman himself, Carle Vernet is most famous for his cavalry scenes and other equestrian motifs. - Trimmed on the upper margin. Abrasions throughout, mostly affecting the background.
Folio (270 x 387 mm). (6), 92, (2) pp. With 2 plates of engraved music and 8 (including frontispiece) coloured aquatints by or after Bonatti, Castellini, Gallina, and Pallagi. Contemporary ruby-red morocco, elaborately gilt with gilt inner dentelle and giltstamped arms to both covers. Green moirée silk endpapers. Green silk divider. Only edition. Of all of Gironi's publications, all of which are of a similar nature, the present work on Greek music is one of the rarest, published in only 30 copies and printed on strong, very wide-margined wove paper. This is the dedication copy for Marie Louise, Archduchess of Austria and Duchess of Parma (1791-1847), the wife of Napoleon and daughter of Francis I (1768-1835), first Emperor of Austria, with a printed dedication dated May 1825 and sumptuously bound with the Austrian arms on both covers. - "Cette dissertation n'étant point destinée au commerce, il n'en a été tiré que trente exemplaires, et l'auteur en a fait hommage à une dame à l'occasion de son mariage. Les gravures sont d'après les dessins de peintres célèbres" (Brunet). - The eight hand-coloured aquatints, showing costumes and musical instruments, are blindstamped with Giulio Ferrario's monogram ("Il costume antico e moderno"). An entirely complete copy, showing only some slight spotting and some foxing to margins. Old catalogue description pasted to lower free endpaper. Traces of professional restorations to spine and hinges. Latterly in the collection of the legendary French maître coiffeur Louis Alexandre Raimon (1922-2008), hairdresser to film stars and aristocracy, with his ownership stamp to first free endpaper ("Collection Alexandre de Paris"). Brunet II, 1615. Graesse III, 89. OCLC 13996001.
Kolorierte Lithographie auf Papier. 605 x 800 mm. Sehr seltene Monumentallithographie von Joseph Lanzedelli dem Jüngeren nach einem Entwurf von Adam Brenner, gedruckt bei B. Greiffenstein für J. Sedlaczek in Wien. Das Plakat zeigt eine Anbetung Jesu Christi als Himmelskönig auf textlicher Basis des "Te Deum Laudamus". Die irdische Sphäre ist zentral durch den schreibenden Heiligen Ambrosius von Mailand repräsentiert, dem der berühmte Hymnus zugeschrieben wird. Mehrere Textzitate mit Strophenangabe der deutschen Nachdichtung des Te Deums von Ignaz Franz sind illustriert, darunter die Anbetung der Cherubim. Erst durch die Bildunterschrift wird der Zusammenhang mit der Hochzeit des Kaiserpaares hergestellt: "Zur Erinnerung an die Oesterreichs Völker beglückende Vermählung und glorreiche Regierung Sr. kais. königl. Apostolischen Majestät unsers allgeliebten und allergnädigsten Kaisers Franz Joseph I., mit Ihrer königl. Hoheit der durchlauchtigsten Prinzessin Elisabeth Amalie Eugenie, Herzogin in Bayern". Die Betonung des Heiligen Ambrosius von Mailand als Schutzpatron des österreichischen Kaisertums hatte in der angespannten Lage vor dem zweiten italienischen Unabhängigkeitskrieg (1859) auch eine politische Dimension. - Der Wiener Kaufmannssohn Adam Brenner (1800-91) studierte unter Leopold Kupelwieser und Ferdinand Georg Waldmüller an der Akademie der bildenden Künste. Er trat sowohl in der Historienmalerei als auch in den niedrigeren Gattungen als begabter akademischer Maler hervor. - Mehrere geklebte Einrisse sowie fachgerechte Ergänzungen im Randbereich. Leicht fleckig und gebräunt.
Folio (320 x 250 mm). 150 leaves with 140 drawings. Various media: felt-tip marker, India ink, pen, graphite, coloured pencil, gouache, etc. Contemporary leatherette album, upper cover giltstamped "Livre d'Or", covers reinforced with metal applications. Marbled endpapers. All edges gilt. A splendid album of original artwork by some of the foremost artists of the Franco-Belgian comics scene active during the early 1990s. The contributions, some of which are located and dated, would seem to have been collected at various comics fairs or events. Virtually all are inscribed to "Jean-Michel", also variously spelt "Yann Mikael" or similarly, suggesting - as do the frequent maritime subjects - that the collector hailed from Brittany, probably from Saint-Malo, where numerous entries were acquired. - Among the still-active luminaries of the medium's Golden Age are Morris (with a portrait of Lucky Luke) and Tabary (who draws Calife Haroun el Poussah, known in English as Haroun El Plassid). Jidéhem draws Gaston (on which strip he long collaborated with Franquin), and Albert Weinberg draws his character Dan Cooper. Marcel Uderzo, Albert's younger brother and sometime collaborator on the original Asterix albums, draws his own character Mathias. Others have taken over the torch from famous predecessors: Al Coutelis draws a spoof of Tanguy and Laverdure, a famous strip he inherited from Albert Uderzo; Jean-Claude Fournier draws Spirou, which character Franquin handed over to him as early as 1970. A portrait in fineliner and broad felt-tip is contributed by André Juillard, who would later take over Edgar P. Jacobs's Blake and Mortimer - a series in which Didier Convard, seen in another entry, would also have a hand, in collaboration with Juillard. Jacobs himself is obliquely present in the portrait of his villain Olrik, drawn by an unidentified contributor, while Jean-Charles Kraehn represents Saint-Malo's very own "bande dessinée" scene. - A few double-page spreads (21, 114). Occasional light offsetting to opposite page or bleeding to next, especially from felt-tip drawings, but on the whole perfectly preserved. A few blank pages serve as protective tissue guards. A complete list of contributors, all but a dozen identified, is available upon request.