1721 Copper Engraving Portrait Archduchess Helena Austria Holy Roman Empire EUM1

This is an original 1721 black and white copper engraving of "Helena Ertzherzogin zu Österreich." This is a portrait of Archduchess Helena of Austria, daughter of Holy Roman Emperor Ferdinand I and Anne of Bohemia and Hungary, member of the House of Habsburg, and a Jesuit nun. The portrait is surrounded by a beautiful decorative motif mimicking a frame set against a strongly cross-hatched and etched background. The design features a subtly ornate frame upon which the heraldic, two-headed Quarter Eagle sits, drawing back drapery from the portrait and framing the Crown of the Austrian Empire. The drapery flows down the left and right side of the frame, flanking the portrait before meeting a botanical design at the bottom of the image. This piece is accompanied by the original German biographical text printed on a separate sheet and features a decorative drop cap and an exquisite vignette incorporating the heraldic, two-headed Quarter Eagle and the Crown of the Austrian Empire.

CONDITION

This 290+ year old Item is rated Near Mint / Very Fine+. Light foxing and aging - bottom margin. No creases. No natural defects.No surface rub.No tears. No water damage. Please note: There is a plate impression bordering the image in this print and there is light offsetting from the facing page on the accompanying text print.

• Product Type: Original Copper Engraving; Black / White
• Grade: Near Mint / Very Fine+
• Dimensions: Approximately 8 x 13.5 inches; 20 x 34 cm
• Authentication: Serial-Numbered Certificate of Authenticity w/ Full Provenance
• Protection: Packaged in a custom archival sleeve with an acid-free black board (great for display, gift-giving, and preservation)

Period Paper is pleased to offer an extremely rare and impressive early eighteenth century collection of biographies and portrait engravings and etchings, produced in Leipzig, Germany in 1721 and 1722. Included are notable monarchs, rulers, religious figures, and members of notable Houses throughout Europe, including several genealogical charts of dynastic lines, spanning the sixteenth to early eighteenth centuries. The collection is comprised of exquisitely engraved and etched copper portrait plates framed by varying decorative motifs, all engraved by Johann Friedrich Rosbach. Many of the portraits include separate biographical pieces ranging in length from a single paragraph to several pages for more notable European monarchs and emperors. If present, the accompanying text is in German and is composed of beautiful woodcut text, with most pages containing elegantly etched drop cap initials, head-and tail-pieces and vignettes. The superb, folio-sized stock upon which the collection is engraved and etched employed the latest advances in eighteenth century paper making and highlights the era's predilection for strong, lightly sized paper with a fine structure and smooth surface. The paper's characteristics are thus similar to Japanese Gampi, and the result is well-preserved and crisp images that exceptionally capture Rosbach's fluid and sharp line work. This collection represents a unique opportunity to collect a valuable part of European history stunningly composed and illustrated.

Keywords specific to this image: Art, Habsburg Empire, Habsburg Dynasty, Habsburg Monarchy, Austrian Monarchy, European History, European Royalty, European Nobility, Pious

EUM1C21