Original Antique Print of Gar and Exotic Armored Fish by Bertuch, c. 1800

Original Antique Print of Gar and Exotic Armored Fish by Bertuch, c. 1800

Original antique hand-colored copper engraving depicting four unusual species of freshwater fish, published in Friedrich Justin Bertuch’s celebrated “Bilderbuch für Kinder” around the beginning of the 19th century.

The plate is titled “Fische XXXIII / Poissons XXXIII” and presents four individually numbered fish, notable for their unusual body shapes, scales, fins and armored appearance.

Fig. 1 depicts a long-snouted gar, an ancient group of freshwater fish immediately recognizable by its elongated jaws and heavily scaled body. Its blue, green, ochre and reddish coloration makes it particularly striking.

The remaining figures depict unusual armored and catfish-like species. Figs. 3 and 4 possess prominent barbels around the mouth, while Fig. 2 is distinguished by its strongly patterned scales and exceptionally large dorsal and pectoral fins.

The plate is beautifully enhanced with original hand coloring in rich shades of blue, green, yellow, ochre, red and brown. The precise engraving of the scales and fins gives the fish an almost jewel-like appearance and makes this one of the more decorative fish plates in Bertuch’s natural-history series.

The engraving bears the signature “J. X. Schmuzer sc.” at lower right.

Friedrich Justin Bertuch (1747–1822) was a German publisher, writer and patron of the arts. His monumental “Bilderbuch für Kinder” (Picture Book for Children) was one of the great illustrated educational encyclopedias of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Published in Weimar from 1790 onward, the work contained hundreds of finely engraved and hand-colored plates covering natural history, geography, science, technology, antiquity, costumes and mythology.

Creator:

Friedrich Justin Bertuch (1747–1822)

Engraver:

J. X. Schmuzer

Source:

Bilderbuch für Kinder

Plate:

Fische XXXIII / Poissons XXXIII

Place of Publication:

Weimar, Germany

Date of Manufacture:

Circa 1800

Period:

Early 19th Century

Style:

Neoclassical, In the Period of

Medium:

Original hand-colored copper engraving on paper

Condition:

Good. Wear consistent with age and use. Light age-related toning and scattered minor spotting. Minor marginal wear. Original hand coloring remains strong and particularly attractive. Please refer to the photographs for further details of condition.

Please note:

This is an original antique print from circa 1800, not a modern reproduction. The print is sold unframed. Framed images or interior views, if shown, are for presentation and inspiration only.

Keywords:

antique fish print, gar fish print, armored fish, catfish print, freshwater fish, exotic fish engraving, ichthyology print, aquatic natural history, Bertuch print, Friedrich Justin Bertuch, J. X. Schmuzer, hand colored engraving, natural history print, zoological illustration, scientific illustration, circa 1800