Wild, C. “West Front of the Cathedral of Chartres.” From "Wild’s English Cathedrals and Wild’s Foreign Cathedrals"

C. Wild. “West Front of the Cathedral of Chartres.”  From Wild’s English Cathedrals and Wild’s Foreign Cathedrals. 

London: R.  Jennings,  c. 1828.  15 x 10 ¾ (image).  Aquatint.  Original hand color.  Deluxe edition trimmed to image and mounted to board as originally issued.  Very good condition. 

From a series of beautifully realized interior and exterior views of the great cathedrals of Europe and England.  Every architectural and sculptural detail, from the intricate spandrels, stained glass windows, and facade sculptures, to the magnificent arches and turrets, is rendered with the utmost finesse and understanding.  The incidental figures and decorative embellishments are executed with equal skill and thoughtfulness, with the rich and subtle hand coloring adding information and convincing illusion, as well as abundant visual delight.  These large scale prints offer an excellent opportunity to savor the ecclesiastical monuments of the West, as well as being glorious decorative images in their own right.  The early 19th-century English success with aquatint and architectural rendering survives here in elegant splendor.