Views of California
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James Cook (1728-1779), was one of the greatest explorers of any age. From 1768 to 1779, Cook explored a huge part of the Pacific Ocean, discovering the Hawaii Islands and charting many of the islands and coastal regions. Cook did visit the west coast of North America, including California, and these two images come from one of the journals of his voyages.
An early Czech engraving of the California mission at Monterey. Interesting and unusual. $85
Prints California Indians from James C. Prichard's The Natural History of Man. London: Hippolyte Balliere, 1845. Octavo (9 1/2 x 5 1/2 full sheet). Etchings. Original hand color. Paper time toned. Very good condition.
A pair of prints of Native Californians from James C. Prichard's fascinating Natural History of Man. By the final life-time edition of this work, issued in 1847, Prichard had gathered all available research about various races of humankind, and his work became an important foundation for modern ethnological science. Included were fine portraits of different human races including this pair. With their accurate detail, fine original hand color, and significant place in the history of the study of humankind, these are most desirable prints.
Robert Sears was a New York publisher of "most splendidly-illustrated" books, intended for "all persons interested in the diffusion of useful knowledge. A Book for the Wives and Children of the Farmer, Mechanic, Laborer, Physician, Lawyer, and Divine-for Person in every sphere and station of Life, and for Followers of every Pursuit." These works included excellent wood engravings showing scenes around the United States and the world, including these prints issued just before and during the California gold rush.
From 1833 to 1864, Joseph Meyer, of Hildburghausen Germany, issued a journal, Meyer's Universum, containing text and steel engravings of all parts of the world. In 1849 he sent his son Herrmann to New York to set up an American branch of the business, and Herrmann issued an American edition of the Universum in 1852-53. This work contained many of the prints from the German version, but new images, specifically commissioned for the American edition, were added. These images of California were issued very shortly after the great "Gold Rush" of 1849. The two city views show the activity which caused those communities to grow tremendously, with ships filling the San Francisco Bay and lined up at Sacramento's quay. Also included are two images of gold mining; one of panning for gold and one of a gold mine. These are some of the earliest images of '49ers' in action.
From a set of rare, contemporary views of California during the Gold Rush, which though not from one of the many official reports of the period, do provide images as accurate and informative as any of the government publications. These charming lithographs were issued in John M. Lett's A Pictorial View of California, which claimed to have "Information and Advice Interesting To All, Particularly Those Who Intend To Visit The Golden Region." The artist, G.V. Cooper, was a painter, cameo cutter and sculptor who went to California with Letts in 1849, making sketches of many of the major sites. These prints provided some of the earliest accurate, first-hand images that those on the East Coast would have had of California during the Gold Rush, and they wonderfully capture this brief yet seminal moment in American history. Some of the prints are of the larger settlements in California, but most are scenes of the gold camps and of prospectors at work. The lithographs were drawn by J. Cameron, better known for his work with Currier & Ives, and Brown & Severin. Given their immediacy and accuracy these are historical artifacts of some note. $165
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"San Francisco. 1854." New York: Henry Bill, 1857. From The History of the World. 8 x 16. Tinted lithograph. Folded as issued. Margins as issued. Minor stains in sky; short tears in margins. Else, very good condition.
A bird's eye view of San Francisco within five years of the Gold Rush. Though by this time San Francisco was a bustling, robust settlement, it was still quite a small community, with the buildings merging rapidly into the rural surrounding hills. This print was issued in Bill's History of the World, and this explains the folds. Though quite a number of these prints were issued, few have survived in good condition. This a lovely and most desirable print of San Francisco. $625
F.N. Otis. "San Francisco (From Rincon Point)." From The Ladies' Repository: A Monthly Periodical, Devoted To Literature and Religion. Cincinnati: February 1857. 4 3/4 x 8. Steel engraving by W. Wellstood. Very good condition.
An unusual and scarce steel engraving from The Ladies' Repository. This mid-nineteenth century periodical was produced in Cincinnati by members of the Methodist Church. It was a magazine "Devoted To Literature and Religion," containing articles, poetry, fiction, and notes of interest to its readers. One of its most interesting aspects was the inclusion of steel engravings. Many had a religious or "genre" theme, but others were topographical views of different parts of the United States. This magazine had a limited circulation and so these prints are quite a bit more scarce than most steel engravings of the period. Some of the views are based on images by W.H. Bartlett, but others are taken either from some of the large folio views of the period or are drawn first hand for The Ladies' Repository. Whatever their source, these are among the most interesting and hard-to-find American views of the middle of last century. $165
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