Thackeray, William Makepeace, (1811-1863) (Text) and Marvy, Louis, 1815-1850, engraver. Callcott, Augustus Wall, 1779-1844, ill. Turner, J. M. W. (Joseph Mallord William), 1775-1851, ill. Danby, Francis, 1793-1861, ill. Creswick, Thomas, 1811-1869, ill. Collins, William, 1788-1847, ill. Redgrave, Richard, 1804-1888, ill. Lee, Frederick Richard, 1798-1879, ill. Cattermole, George, 1800-1868, ill. Müller, William James, 1812-1845, ill. Harding, James Duffield, 1798-1863, ill. Nasmyth, Peter, 1787-1831, ill. Wilson, Richard, 1713-1782, ill. Cooke, Edward William, 1811-1880, ill. Constable, John, 1776-1837, ill. DeWint, Peter, 1784-1849, ill. Cox, David, 1783-1859, ill. Gainsborough, Thomas, 1727-1788, ill. Roberts, David, 1796-1864, ill. Stanfield, Clarkson, 1793-1867, ill. (Artists)

Sketches after English landscape painters. By L. Marvy. With short notices by W.M. Thackeray. (First edition)

London: David Bogue, [1850]. [23] leaves of text and 20 colour engravings each with tissue guard. (4to) 32.5x24 cm (12¾ x 9½") period three-quarter blue morocco and marbled boards, spine gilt, raised bands, all edges gilt. Edges worn, front hinge open; paper a bit toned but overall internally near fine.

Henry Vizetelly, Printer and engraver, Gough Square, Fleet Street"
Plates engraved by Louis Marvy; after Sir Augustus Wall Callcott, J.M.W. Turner, J. Holland, Francis Danby, Thomas Creswick, William Collins, Richard Redgrave, Frederick Richard Lee, George Cattermole, William James Müller, James Duffield Harding, Peter Nasmyth, Richard Wilson, Edward William Cooke, John Constable, Peter De Wint, David Cox, Thomas Gainsborough, David Roberts, and Clarkson Stanfield.

Each plate is followed by a short critique by Thackeray. Thackeray was an old friend of Marvy, a French artist, who took refuge in London after the chaos of 1848. Theodore Taylor’s 1864 biography of Thackeray mentions the history of the book: “A fine and skillful landscape painter himself, M. Marvy, while here, as a means of earning a living, made a series of engravings after the works of our English landscape painters... The publishers, however, would not undertake the work without a series of letter-press notices of each picture from Thackeray; and the latter accordingly added some criticisms which are interesting as developing his theory of this kind of art” (p.32). An interesting and quite scarce Thackeray item, very rarely found colored.

Abbey, Life in England, no 207 : "The majority of the copies issued were uncoloured." Item #51-2488

Price: $900.00