Prospect der Stadt Marseille [View of the City of Marseille]
Antique uncoloured copper-engraved folding view, 1773
A broad panoramic view of Marseille, one of the great Mediterranean ports encountered on the outward route of Niebuhr’s expedition. The city stretches across the shoreline with ships in the harbour and hills behind, presenting Marseille as a commercial and maritime gateway between northern Europe, the Levant and North Africa. Although included in a work best known for Arabia, the view is valuable as a mid-eighteenth-century representation of a major French port before modern redevelopment. Baurenfeind’s expedition drawings, engraved for Niebuhr’s narrative, were intended to preserve observed topography rather than picturesque invention. The result is a restrained but atmospheric prospect with strong French, Mediterranean and voyage-illustration interest. It is also attractive as a non-Arabian plate from the expedition route for collectors of French port views.
CAPTION BELOW PICTURE: 'Prospect der Stadt Marseille [View of the City of Marseille]'
DATE PRINTED: 1773
IMAGE SIZE: Approx 21.0 x 43.0cm, 8.25 x 16.75 inches (Large); Please note that this is a folding map.
ARTIST/CARTOGRAPHER/ENGRAVER: Georg Wilhelm Baurenfeind, artist; Antoine-Jean de Fehrt, engraver
PROVENANCE: "Description de l’Arabie, d’après les observations et recherches faites dans le pays même", par M. Niebuhr, Capitaine d’Ingénieurs, membre de la Société Royale de Göttingen. À Copenhague, chez Nicolas Möller, imprimeur de la Cour
TYPE: Antique uncoloured copper-engraved folding view
VERSO: There is nothing printed on the reverse side, which is plain
CONDITION: Good; suitable for framing. Please check the scan for any blemishes prior to making your purchase. Virtually all antiquarian maps and prints are subject to some normal aging due to use and time which is not obtrusive unless otherwise stated. I offer a no questions asked return policy - see below.
AUTHENTICITY: This is an authentic historic print, published at the date stated above. I do not offer reproductions. It is not a modern copy. The term 'original' when applied to a print means that it was printed at the first or original date of publication; it does not imply that the item is unique. 'Print' means any image created by applying an inked block to paper or card under pressure by any method including wood engraving, steel engraving, copperplate, wood cut and lithography.
REMARKS: FRANCE: Gravures et Cartes anciennes. DEUTSCHLAND: Alte Lankarten und Stadt ansichten. ITALIA: Stampe e Mappe antiche. ESPAÑA: Mapas antiquos y impresiones antiguas. E and OE. Force Majeure. English law shall apply.
RETURNS POLICY: I offer a no questions returns policy. All I ask is that you pay return shipping and mail back to me in original condition, suitably packed & insured, within 14 days of receipt.