1855 WILLIAM SIMPSON SEVASTOPOL BATTLE ANTIQUE COLNAGHI CRIMEAN WAR PRINT CRIMEA

Description: SEVASTOPOLFROM THE EASTOR EXTREME RIGHTOF ENGLISH ATTACK Plate 31(De-Luxe Edition) Original tinted & hand-coloured Lithographic print, by Day & Son, Lithographers to The Queen, from The Seat of War in the East (1855),by William Simpson Published by Paul & Dominic Colnaghi, Pall Mall, London, 1855 Sevastopol from the East is an original antique lithographed and hand-coloured print, produced by the publishers Colnaghi & Co. in 1855. It was one of a series of 79 prints based on the paintings of the Crimean war artist William Simpson that were collected in The Seat of War in the East, published by Colnaghi in 1855. The work was produced in two separate editions - the standard tinted edition, and the de-luxe tinted and hand-coloured edition. This print is plate 31 from the de-Luxe edition of the work, in which the lithographs were enhanced with very fine hand-colouring. The title of the print and details of the artist, publishers and lithographers are printed in the lower margin: ‘W. Simpson’, ‘Paul & Dominic Colnaghi & Co., 13 & 14 Pall Mall East, Publishers to Her Majesty’, ‘Day & Son, Lithrs. to the Queen’, and ‘Colnaghi's Authentic Series’. This print shows the view of Sevastopol from the British positions to the east of the town. Simpson’s own description of the picture was recounted by Brackenbury in his Descriptive Sketches Illustrating The First Series of The Seat of War in the East (1855): ‘A long ridge of high ground has been made into one mass of earthen fortifications, at which they are still working . . . At one end of this ground are the remains of the Round Tower. All along this side of the town is a continuous line of fortifications, trenches, and batteries, down close to the harbour. On the extreme left of the picture I have indicated a Russian battery by the smoke of its guns; this is what they call the Flag-Staff battery; it is in front of the French attack’.Wiliam Simpson (1823-1899): was commissioned by the publisher John Scott of Colnaghi & Co. travel to the Crimea to produce a series of watercolours and sketches that would eventually go on to become the illustrated portfolio The Seat of War in the East (1855). Simpson arrived in the Crimea on 15th of November 1854, landing at the port of Balaklava on the Crimean Peninsula. His first assignment was to cover the disastrous Charge of the Light Brigade, despite the event having occurred three weeks before his arrival. The charge had taken place at Balaclava, and Simpson could make sketches from the scene of the battle, but he also relied on descriptions of the battle by those who had witnessed the charge. Simpson consulted with the Light Brigade’s commander, Lord Cardigan, to ensure that his depiction of the charge was accurate. It took several visits to Cardigan’s yacht before his painting was approved. Once Cardigan was satisfied with Simpson's depiction of the official version of events, the work was swiftly dispatched to London. Simpson went on to document a wide range of actions and events during the war, making drawings in the field – sometimes in watercolour and often accompanied by a detailed outline that noted important relevant information. Once completed, his work was then typically vetted by a general, and, if approved, sent to London using the military’s official postal service. From there, the work would be submitted for further vetting, before final approval by Queen Victoria herself. It was only after this long drawn out process that the images would finally be handed to the lithographers, Day & Son, to produce the final work. Simpson left the Crimea in September 1855, returning to London as a minor celebrity, and becoming known as 'Crimean Simpson'. His collaboration with the publishers Colnaghi & Co, The Seat of the War in the East, which included 79 lithographs, was a major success, with two thousand copies being produced. This publication was to be the high water mark of Lithography - a process that was to be made obsolete by the arrival of photography. The Crimean War was the first to be photographed, and from the mid Victorian era onwards, photographers would replace war artists like Simpson as the chroniclers of all future wars. Condition: In very good condition. The print is in very good condition, with a few marks to the margins.Published: 1855 Single sheet, tinted and hand-coloured lithographic print Dimensions: image: 280xmm x 450mm, (image plus margins: 365mm x 510mm) ***I have several other original William Simpson lithographs listed at the moment. Combined postage is available*** Please email if you require any further information _gsrx_vers_1677 (GS 9.8.1 (1677))

Price: 145 GBP

Location: Lancashire

End Time: 2024-12-04T11:55:32.000Z

Shipping Cost: 30.47 GBP