Collection themes

In my blog about what it is to collect, I talked about the importance of developing a theme or topic for a collection. As I noted, the theme of a collection is that characteristic which the prints share that turns the assemblage into a single entity, rather than simply a group of prints. Today I will discuss this topic a bit more in depth, considering some suggestions on how to pick a theme for your collection and a look at popular and overlooked themes.
A theme can consist of a single subject--such as views of Niagara Falls; a printmaker or group of printmakers--as in prints engraved by Philadelphia craftsmen or prints after Hogarth; a printmaking process--such as mezzotinting; or any other shared characteristic--such as newspaper bonus prints. A theme can be comprehensive for the chosen subject or limited to prints issued in a certain period, such as prints published before the nineteenth century. Pretty much any subject related to prints can be a theme; the important notion is that a theme limits the universe of prints to be collected; a theme is what ties the individual prints together into the united entity which is a collection.

The theme determines not only the nature of the resulting collection, but also the experience which the collector will have in putting together the collection. It is thus important that a potential collector spend some time thinking about what theme to choose. Following are a few basic considerations to keep in mind.

Most obviously, the theme should be something of interest to the collector. Much of the value of prints comes from their content and history, and unless a collector enjoys those things, he/she will not derive any of the enjoyment that can come with finding and owning objects in which one is interested. It really doesn’t make sense to collect something simply because it sounds impressive or because the value of the items (and thus of the collection) is high, for not only will you be missing out on an important component of collecting, but it is likely that you will not want to continue to collect over the years.

Besides this, there are some practical considerations to take into account in choosing a theme. You want a theme which will include enough prints so that you will be able to find prints to add, but not so broad that prints that fit come along all the time. If your theme is too narrow, then you will never find prints the acquire and that certainly isn’t much fun. On the other hand, part of the fun of collecting is that there is an element of the hunt, with its accompanying thrill of discovery, and of serendipity, with its resulting pleasures of surprise. If every time you go to an auction, walk into a gallery or browse a flea market you come across prints that fit your theme, I suspect it will soon become a bit boring.
Another important consideration is the cost of prints that fit your theme. You might find early Dutch world maps to be fascinating, and they can be found on the market, but these tend to be very expensive. If you decide to collect these and can spend only several hundred dollars or so a year, you will not find many such maps you can afford. It might be better to collect early Dutch maps of some other area less expensive, say of France, or to collect world maps from the nineteenth century. One trick is to pick an “obscure” or “overlooked” theme (cf. below), where the prints will not be so desirable or not as much collected, for then you are likely to be able to find more opportunities to purchase prints that fit your theme and have an affordable price.
The theme that a collector chooses is the foundation of the collection and so the collector should spend time in selecting the subject. The collector should always allow a bit of lee-way in the thematic criterion, and the theme can, of course, change over time. Also, the collection can be culled or expanded as the collector's interest changes.

Popular themes


For maps, the most typical theme is to collect maps of a particular place. This is an obvious theme if you are interested in a particular city, county, state, country, or continent, and such collections can be very interesting in showing the growth of knowledge of that place over time. This also allows you to collect maps from many different periods in a wide range of styles, sizes, and price ranges. This sort of collection can be particularly good if knowledge of the subject changes considerably over time (where new discoveries are shown on maps as time passes). It is important to note, however, that different places can be relatively more or less expensive, so that, for instance, maps of Texas will usually be two or three times as expensive as maps of Pennsylvania. In our experience, the most common of this type of collection are maps of the World, the United States, Texas, and maps showing California as an island.


Views are similarly collected mostly by place. Views of cities are very popular, with the larger cities both having more prints done of them and more people collecting them. Colleges and schools are also popular as subjects, though for most educational institutions not many prints were made of them. Some will collect types of views, be their vue d’optiques or the bird’s eye views of the nineteenth century.

For historical prints, the two most popular themes are those of a particular person or war. For the latter, prints of the American Revolution are always popular, with those of the Civil War coming in close behind. The other wars are less popular, but there still are many people who collect the French & Indian War, the Mexican War, the War of 1812, and to a lesser extent the Spanish American War. Presidential portraits are the most common type of collection of individuals, with Washington and Lincoln being by far the most common. Political prints are also popular, especially political cartoons and campaign prints.

Sporting prints are mostly used for decoration, but there are collectors of specific sports. Baseball, polo, and rowing are probably those we see most often. Likewise, natural history prints are less collected than purchased for the use of decoration, but people do collect prints of particular plants, say Fritillaria or Magnolia, and others seek prints of specific animals, say Beavers or Cardinals. It probably won’t be a surprise that the most popular animal themes are prints of particular species of dogs (the problem with the latter subject is that many times breeds have appeared only in modern times and even if not, the breeds often have changed their appearance considerably over time).

There are many collections where the theme is a particular maker. This can apply to those who collect maps by a particular cartographer (Mercator, Speed, Tanner), or those who collect prints by a noted naturalist (Audubon, Catesby, Redoute). The most common printmakers collected, however, are probably fine art artists, be they old master (Durer, Rubens) or modern (Benton, Pennell). Print publishers are also collected by many, with prints by Currier & Ives probably the most commonly collected of all antique prints.

Overlooked themes

The themes mentioned above can make great collections, but their popularity means both that you will be competing with more people to find these prints and that the prices of these prints are likely to be higher. If you are going to collect one of these themes, it can be a good idea to pick a less popular place (say a region of France), a more obscure person (say William H. Taft), or a less loved bird (say the Cat Bird). It can also make sense to pick a less common type of theme. As long as you find the theme to be of interest and there are a reasonable number of items that fit the bill, an obscure theme can give you all the pleasures of collecting without the stiff competition and high prices of the common themes.

For maps, you could seek maps with sailing ships in them, with different types of compass roses, or ones that show volcanoes, and there can be any number of other themes that could tie your collection together. We had a collector who collected prints that included the American Eagle, but only if it was not a standard ornithological print. The Eagle appears as symbol in many different prints and this was a collection we had a great time helping the client with. Another collector sought anything (prints or other antiques) that included a handshake and it was surprising how many prints you could find with a handshake once you started to look.

We have often suggested to people collect some of less popular printmakers. There are many, many Currier & Ives collectors, but very few who collect the hundreds of other American popular printmakers of the nineteenth century. You can put together a wonderful collection of both small and large folio prints for just a fraction of the cost of a similar collection of Currier & Ives prints, simply because less people collect them. Almost any Currier & Ives print you find will have a strong, market price on it, but you can still find bargains by many of the other important publishers such as Louis Prang, the Kelloggs, P.S. Duval and others.

There can be collections on almost any subject you can imagine and it can be fun to come up with your own, unusual theme. Now don’t get me wrong; I think collecting Currier & Ives is a terrific thing, and one of the most important collections I ever worked on was a collection of views of Niagara Falls. My point is simply that if you are so inclined, you can often do much better by following the path less well traveled.

De Jode Emblema

We get all sorts of interesting prints that pass through our hands and I have asked our staff, that when we get something they would like to research, to be willing to write a blog on that print. Victoria Koursaros was particularly interested in a fascinating allegorical print engraved by Peter De Jode and issued about 1600. Here is her thoughts in this wonderful allegory:

After a visit to the Philadelphia Art Museum the other week, I was reminded of how much a work of art can have to say. The artist uses tricks of composition, color, symbols, or gestures to communicate with the viewer. Even a simple still life could, in fact, be a vanitas, a reflection of vanity and one’s ultimate mortality. What types of fruits are used, or how much wine is in a goblet, all says something about a life led. So with that in mind, I thought why not dissect some of the prints that we have here in the shop...

One of the best time periods to analyze is the Baroque Era. Situated in between the balanced perfection of both the Renaissance and Neoclassicism, the Baroque was about theatricality and ornamentation. Diagonals break out of the composition, shifting the overall sense of visual balance to that of exuberance.


The use of pictorial allegories has been popular throughout most of art history. A figure, usually female, represents a virtue, science, or whatever, indicated by what she is wearing, holding, or doing. It was a way of communicating with the viewer. Saints, Gods, and historic figures also frequently show up as emblems. Here is a prime example of this. Published in the early Seventeenth Century, the lavish double page “Emblema Tabula II,” by Pieter de Jode, is bursting at the seams with allegories and meaning. [ Click here to see large images of this print ] For instance, Perseus’s slaying of Medusa, in the top center, represents not only good over evil but knowledge’s power over the old world’s ignorance and superstition. The Renaissance enabled artists to finally break out of purely religious subject matters and started a renewed pursuit of knowledge. These seeds which were planted in the Renaissance, culminated in the Eighteenth Century’s Age of Enlightenment. As seen here, the iconography is derived from Classicism, not the Bible, and the overall meaning of the image is the strength of the intellect.

To begin with, the horizon line is perfectly centered, thus starting the composition in complete balance. The center emblem seems to represents a mathematical ideal of the human form, similar in concept to Leonardo’s Vitruvian Man. Three figures are broken down by a series of angles and circles, implying that science and mathematics offers equations for ideal proportion and form.

Two female figures stand on either side of the emblem. Justice, with her scales and sword, is on the right and Courage, with her shield and submissive lion, stands guard on the left. In front of them are four seated females. I am not completely sure of their identities, but here are my best guesses.

On the far right, is Wisdom. She has a light shining above her head representing the light of knowledge and also is very reminiscent of Paolo Veronese’s “Wisdom and Strength” from 1565. The figure next to her is representative of the Sciences. In one hand she holds a geometric type of apparatus, whilst the other hand is holding a sword with a snake, which is commonly linked to medicine. To the left of her, is History. She sits listening and recording all that is taking place. A partially clothed woman sits next to her. She symbolizes time and life itself; in one hand she holds the hour glass and her foot rests on a wheel. The wheel, being on its side, indicates the chance events of human existence.


In the foreground, are two chariots being pulled by a leopard, dog, lion, and a centaur. The animals, and especially the centaur, represent the unbridled primitive nature of man which can be “reigned in” by the disciplines of the intellectualism. The chariots are driven by Ares (Mars), the God of War with his shield and helmet, on the right, and Hercules on the left, as indicated by his wooden club and lion’s skin. Both of them are representative of strength.

Along the top, is the above mentioned Perseus in mid-slay. To the right of him, are Hermes and Athena, both of whom helped Perseus in that particular task. Hermes (Mercury) is the young man with wings (though, he more commonly has the wings on his shoes) and a helmet. He is the God of Messengers. Athena (Minerva) is the Goddess of Wisdom and War. We know it is her because of her helmet, shield, owl, and olive branch. The small female figure with the winged helmet is a mystery to me. Perhaps she represents Victory, because of her wings and the fact that she is holding a globe. Next, appears to be Hephaestus (Vulcan) as he is the God of Fire. At the far left is, most likely, Bellona, the Roman Goddess of War. Here she sits on an elephant, which is a representation of strength and fortitude.

Seemingly Masonic images abound throughout the print. I cannot be certain these are Masonic, but these symbols certainly point to this interpretation. Most obviously are the craftsman’s tools like the rulers and the compass. Other indications are the checkered floor, the variations of column styles, the bright light shining down at the top center, and the fact that the main element is divided into three sections. The number three is significant because it represents the three degrees of the craft or three stages of personal development. Though Masonry didn’t become really popular until the Eighteenth Century, it did begin to flourish in the Seventeenth Century. The Masonic ideal of knowledge and enlightenment seems to tie in with the overall feel of this print as well.

All of this is, of course, only a beginning! Each stone figure along the top and in the alcoves of the walls is communicating something, as are the two female figures atop the columns (Fame and Fortune perhaps?), and all the symbols engraved into the columns. Still I hope that this brief interpretation will serve as an example of the old adage “a picture is worth a thousand words!”

Antiques Roadshow: Raleigh

At the end of June, Antiques Roadshow taped in Raleigh, North Carolina, the second stop in the 2009 Summer Tour. One never knows what to expect from any of the many stops of the Roadshow tour, and it is not unusual that more interesting things come in at some of the smaller cities than at the larger ones. From my viewpoint, Raleigh proved to be the most interesting stop of all my thirteen years working as an appraiser for the Roadshow.

At every stop for Antiques Roadshow the appraisers at the Prints & Poster table see a wide range of prints in terms of quality and interest. The variety of prints that come in to be appraised fairly closely matches the range of prints that exist in the “real world”; there are far more prints that are reproductions or inexpensively produced prints intended for decoration than there are finer, historically important prints. As discussed in an earlier blog, this does not mean those prints do not have value, but they are prints we have seen many times over the years and which do not get the appraisers terribly excited.

Raleigh was typical in that the majority of prints were of the more common, decorative sort. I mentioned in my previous Roadshow blog that in most cities we tend to see one particular type of print that comes in more often there than at our other stops. However, I cannot say that that was the case in Raleigh. There were all the usual suspects (tourist etchings from the early 20th century, etching revival landscapes from the 1890s, sepia collotypes copied from paintings in the first decade of the 20th century, Currier & Ives copies, museum reproductions of paintings, and the like), but no particular single type that we saw in Raleigh more than usual.

What was unusual was the number of prints and maps that were of particular interest to me. I have been in the print business for over 25 years so I have come across thousands of types of prints. It is rare that something I haven’t seen fairly often comes in to the Roadshow (though, thankfully, interesting prints that are worth taping come in regularly), but in Raleigh I was surprised by how many such prints did come in. I will not discuss what was taped since it will air on the program next season, but there were some wonderful things I saw in Raleigh which were not taped.

One print which came in right at the end of the day was a large folio N. Currier print of the “Wreck of the U.S.M. Steam Ship ‘Arctic.’” This is a terrific large folio print, but what was exciting was that it was brought in by a descendant of James Smith, one of few passengers to survive and the artist whose sketch was the basis for the drawing by James E. Butterworth from which the lithograph was made! Not only did his great-grandniece have an original example of the print, which had come down to her from Smith, but she had all sorts of supporting documents, such as a book written by the artist of his experiences in the disaster, a photo of the artist, and a number of other fascinating documents. Pretty cool stuff.

Another impressive print which came in was an original John James Audubon print of the “Sea-Side Finch” which was said to be a gift from John James Audubon to a natural scientist who was a friend. We do not have the time while appraising at Antiques Roadshow to do any serious research, so I could not verify what the owner told me, but there was considerable, plausible evidence that this print was an early state of the print, hand-colored by Audubon himself, and given as a gift to this naturalist. Again, pretty cool.

What amazed me, however, was that I saw two prints that I had never seen before. While there are many book illustrations and ephemeral-type prints I haven’t seen, there are not a lot of large-sheet prints of note that I haven’t come across in the many years I have been in this business. To have two turn up in Raleigh was really exciting.

One of these was a double page bird print by John Gould. This was a complete surprise for me as I had no idea that Gould did a double page bird print. Almost all of Gould’s 2,999 different prints are folio prints, single pages that were issued in his many works. However, in his Birds of Australia there were a few double page images, including the one that was brought in to the Roadshow. I am sure most of my colleagues in Australia and England (where more of these prints turn up) would know this, but it was a surprise to me and also to the other print appraisers at the table. Not earth-shattering, but one of the things I enjoy most about doing appraisals for Antiques Roadshow is being able to learn new things.

An even bigger surprise was to come across a wonderful emancipation proclamation print published in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. This was a surprise because Lincoln prints are one of our specialties and I almost never come across a major Lincoln print I haven’t seen before. I hadn’t come across this print in person or in a reference book, but it turns out that an example is in the Alfred Whital Stern Collection of Lincolniana at the Library of Congress.

The print contains the text of the proclamation, with an image at the top of Lincoln either handing the document to or receiving it from an angel (“The Hand of God in Freedom”), while at the bottom are two vignettes. The one of the left shows a slave in a cotton field and the one of the right a black member of Congress. The print was printed by the Enquirer Job Printing Company of Cincinnati, but was published by A.B. Daniel in Tuscaloosa. There is text at the bottom saying that “Agents Wanted,” so it is possible that this print was issued to advertise a book on the topic (I have not been able to locate any such book). In any case, another wonderful print that came as a surprise to me.

These are just some of the interesting maps and prints that came in to Antiques Roadshow in Raleigh and none of them ended up being taped. And of course, there were hundreds of not-so-wonderful prints that also were not taped, though all received a verbal appraisal from myself or the other appraisers at the Prints & Photographs table. So how do those items which are taped get selected?

Each appraiser spends about 11 hours sitting at a table looking at item after item in their specialty, giving each owner information on the history and value of their lamp, broach, book, vase, print or whatever. If something comes in that an appraiser thinks might make a good appraisal for the program, he or she starts the process by calling over one of the producers.

An appraiser can judge an item is worthy of taping if the manner in which it was acquired is interesting, its history is unusual, its value substantial or it is just an exciting piece. Basically the appraisers are looking for things which will be of interest to the television audience. If the appraiser thinks the item would make “good TV,” then no information of the item is given to the owner at the appraisal table, but instead a producer is called to look at the item, hear the tale from the appraiser, and talk to the owner.

If the producer agrees with the appraiser that the item should be taped, then the owner goes off to the “Green Room” to get made-up and to wait until it is time to tape the appraisal. Up to this stage the appraiser has not had time to do any serious research, but once the decision is made to tape, the appraiser can do some research to pin down a particular fact or get a bit more context on the item. The appraiser then goes before the cameras and gives the owner an appraisal in one go. Those appraisals are not staged; what you see on air is how the appraisal happens in real time.

From what I have written above it is clear that some really nice items do not get taped. Why not? There are many reasons. Often, the owners knows too much! In the age of the Internet and Google, owners can often find out a lot about an item before they bring it in. It is much more interesting for viewers of the program if an owner is learning something new in an appraisal, as opposed to if they are just being told what they already know. Because of this, it is not unusual for something of great interest not to get filmed because the owner was too knowledgeable. Other reasons that items don’t get taped are that similar items might have been already shown on a previous show or that the item is not owned by the person bringing in it (an on-air appraisal can be given only to the owner of the object).

All these reasons for not taping an item make a lot of sense, though it sometimes seems a shame that something does not get taped. However, I can tell you that everything brought in to Antiques Roadshow does get a verbal appraisal. All the appraisers are aware that the owners put in a lot of effort and spend a lot of time to bring them down to the event. We all make it a point to give as much information as we can for everything brought in, whether it is worth $5 or $50,000, and whether it is selected for taping or not.

Sometimes if you watch the Raodshow you might think everything that comes in is valuable or has an interesting story, but if you watch the “Feedback Booth” segment at the end, you get a sense of how many items that are brought in are not that interesting nor that valuable. I hope you also get a sense of how even people whose items are not that valuable still get a good appraisal and have a good time.

The appraisers also have a good time and in Raleigh I not only had a good time, but I also saw some really cool things and even learned quite a bit. The next three stops on the 2009 Summer Tour are in Madison, Phoenix and Denver, and my partner, Don Cresswell, will represent us there, so I won’t be back at the appraisal table until the last stop, in San Jose. I can’t wait to head out west and hope I’ll see even more interesting things then…

As a reminder, if you would like to see some of the archived print appraisals from Antiques Roadshow, by myself and other appraisers, you can find these on the Roadshow web site.

A PRINT BUYER’S GUIDE: Part 2: Where to buy

In the last blog I discussed the criteria a buyer should apply when considering purchasing a print. Today I will look at the advantages and disadvantages of different sources from which one can buy prints. It is pretty obvious that I have stake in promoting the idea of purchasing from print dealers, as that is my business, but I will try to be as unbiased as possible in this discussion.

Auctions:

Auctions can be a rich source for finding antique prints. Most general auctions contain a few antique prints and maps and there are also regular specialty print/map auctions. It is well worth considering this source when looking for an antique print.

There are a couple of advantages that can come with buying at auction. First, you get the material “fresh” on the market, so that you have an equal chance to buy the print as any other buyer. Sometimes the “best” prints are sold quietly to a special client of a dealer, but at auction, all bidders are equal. The other main advantage is that you can sometimes get a print for well under market value. If there is no one else at the auction interested in the print, or if no one else there realizes its significance, you can get a real great price.

We do not buy much of our stock at auction (for many of the reasons that I’ll discuss following), but we have over the years found some real “steals” at auction. Generally we do best when we know how important a print or map is and no one else bidding does. In fact, auction is the way we get some of our best deals, for if someone brings us a print to purchase privately, we feel an obligation to pay the seller a fair wholesale price, but there is no such obligation at auction. As long as the auction house is willing to accept our bid, even if the bid is ridiculously low, that is part of the risk/reward calculus the seller accepts when putting something up at auction.

However, there are a number of serious disadvantages to buying at auction as well. One problem is that the selection of items that comes up at auction is very limited. Auction houses do not go out to try to get a variety of all sorts of prints; they sell only what is brought to them. If you are looking for a particular type of print, you might not come across anything appropriate even if you look in a large number of auctions. Of course, if all you want is some print or other—-as long as it appeals to you—-then you would probably find something if you check out a reasonable number of auctions. However, if you are building a collection or are looking for, say, a shell print of a certain size, you could go years without finding the right thing at an auction.

A second issue is that for auctions, the phrase “Caveat Emptor” should be kept firmly in mind. Almost all auctions sell their items “as is.” This means that the auction will often not warrant that the print is old, genuine, that it is a particular edition, nor that it is in reasonable shape. A framed print can look great hanging in the auction house, but once you get it home, you can find it is really damaged, that it is a much later edition than you thought, or that it is an outright fake. There is usually no recourse. As long as you either are willing to take the risk or you have enough experience to know exactly what you are getting, this isn’t a big deal, but never bid at auction without keeping this caveat in mind.

The final issue about auctions is that while you can sometimes get a print for a really good price, you also can pay more than you would pay from a retail shop. Even if you are immune to “auction fever” (where you get carried away in bidding and end up paying far more than you intended), unless you know what a print should sell for and set yourself a firm limit, you can end up paying over retail at auction. If two people are bidding on a print, neither of who knows the fair value of the print, the hammer price can go well beyond what it should. Just because there was an underbidder, someone who bid almost as much as you, doesn't mean that you bought the item at a good price.

A further factor in the cost of prints purchased at auction is the premium charged by auction houses. This is a surcharge the auction house charges you above what you bid. If the buyer’s premium is, say, 20%, then your bid of $200 will end up costing you $240. It can be deceptive to think you are only paying your bid price, but you should always keep the premium in mind. It used to be that most buyer’s premiums were about 10%, so the difference between bid and price paid was not huge, but now most premiums are at least 20% and many are now 25%! That makes a serious difference and it is all too easy to forget this surcharge when bidding.

So, in conclusion, my advice respecting auctions is that anyone wanting to purchase prints should consider looking at auctions, but only if you prepare yourself in a couple of ways. First, educate yourself so that you can recognize exactly what it is you are bidding for in terms of authenticity, significance and condition. Then you also need to figure out what a fair price to pay is for the item, factor in the premium, and stick to the bid you decide on. Of course, if you are not paying a lot and are willing to risk the money on something that is not what you thought it was, you don’t need to do this, but otherwise, take the time to prepare yourself before bidding.

Ebay

Ebay is, of course, an auction, so many of the comments above apply to it. However, I think it is worth making a few other observations that apply more specifically to ebay. In a way, ebay reflects both the best and the worst of auctions. Everyday, thousands of prints of all sorts are sold on ebay, so you can certainly find them. However, it takes a lot of work to try to find just what you are looking for and this not only can be frustrating, but you cannot be sure of success. Furthermore, prints on ebay are often miss-identified, the photos can be terrible, and usually the seller doesn’t really know what he/she is selling.

If you browse through the list of prints on ebay, you will soon realize that the majority of the prints being sold are not antiques. For instance, there must be a “Currier & Ives” print sold every 15 minutes or so on ebay, but the majority of these are reproductions. Sometimes an ebay seller will guarantee the item, but not always. An advantage to ebay is that there is no buyer’s premium and sometimes prices can be low. Still, other times the prices paid are fairly strong and like at any auction, the bids can even go over retail

The main advantages of ebay are that there are a huge number of items and sometimes things sell for well under their market value. The main disadvantages are that you cannot examine the items in person, it can be hard to find exactly what you are looking for, and there are many sellers who do not really know what they are selling, not to mention the sellers who are dishonest. My advice is similar to that for regular auctions, but with an emphasis on how important it is to educate yourself so that you can be sure you know what you are bidding on.

Note that ebay has a print buying guide page which it is worth checking out if you want to go this route.

Flea markets, thrift shops, etc.

There are lots of markets which sell mostly “low end” items, and you can often find prints there. Flea markets, thrift and consignment shops, sidewalk sales, and the like. These can be a good place to look for prints, for sometimes you can find a “treasure” in among the “trash.” It can be a lot of fun to go out to garage sales or stop by a flea market and you can sometimes find nice prints this way.

There are two main problems with buying prints from these sources. The first is that the seller almost never knows exactly what it is that is being sold and so it is very important to keep “caveat emptor” in mind. There is never a guarantee and so you might find you bought a reproduction instead of the “treasure” you thought it was. And like at auction, there can be hidden problems which you don’t find about until you get the print home. Also, while prices are usually low, sometimes you can pay too much if both you and the seller think a print is something which it proves not to be.

The other problem is that the selection you will find is very limited. When we first went into business, I used to go out on many weekends to garage sales or I would stop at roadside flea markets to look for prints. However, I have found over the years that it is only in about 1 in 10 times (if that) that I will find anything worth buying, so now I go to sales like this only when it is a nice day and I want to enjoy the experience, never simply in the hopes of finding good prints.

My advice here is just that. If you enjoy this sort of thing, it can be a lot of fun to hunt for good prints. And there some large “flea markets” (like Rennigers or Brimfield) where there are so many dealers that you have a reasonable chance of finding something of interest. But, either make sure that you buy only what you know is what you want and and at a price you know is fair, or pay only so much as you are willing to find out was wasted on a purchase you made a mistake on.

Dealers

Like the others sources, buying from dealers has both its advantages and disadvantages. The one thing that most people think of as a negative is price. Generally, unless the dealer makes a mistake, you are not going to find any “deals.” A knowledgeable and honest dealer will put a fair market price on prints. As discussed in my previous post, there is top-end market and lower-end market, but when you buy from a dealer you expect to pay market price. The other sources give you at least the possibility of buying something at a “deal” and that can be very appealing. It isn’t that you pay too much from dealers, but that you can sometimes do “better” in terms of price from the other sources.

However, there are a good number of advantages which balance this out. The first thing is that a dealer should know what is being sold and so you can have confidence that you are getting what you think you are buying. Not only can you be more confident simply because of the knowledge of the dealer, but you have further confidence because most dealers will guarantee what they sell. Given the number of fakes or reproductions of prints, this is an important point. Furthermore, a good dealer will tell you what, if anything, is wrong with the print and most will sell only prints in good condition. It might seem more expensive to pay $175 for that Currier & Ives print than the $50 you paid for the same print at auction, but when you realize you have to pay an extra $150 to $200 on top of the purchase price to get it conserved, you realize it wasn’t such a good deal.

Dealers also provide services you usually do not get from auctions and certainly not from flea markets and the like. You should be able to get a good selection of prints from a dealer, so you can find something that fits your needs and budget. One of the main services I think the Philadelphia Print Shop provides is to spend a lot of time and effort to put together as good an inventory of prints on all subjects and in all prices ranges as possible. This takes time and effort, but it means that we usually can find something a buyer will like that will suit his/her needs and will be in his/her budget.

A knowledgeable dealer will also provide you with information about the prints (date, author, significance, etc.) and will help explain why you might consider choosing one print over another. Also, a dealer is in the business of pricing prints, so as long as you are dealing with an honest dealer you can be assured you are paying a market price. It probably won’t be a “deal” but it should be fair.

One further thing to consider is that if you are interesting in buying a number of prints over the years, you you can build up relationships with a dealer that can be of benefit to you. A dealer will often give a good client a break here or there and will be on the look out for prints that the client is seeking. Also most dealers do not mind giving advice to a good client on the purchase of a print from some other source.

In sum

My basic advice is that a print buyer should consider all these sources, but being aware of the advantages and disadvantages of each. Auctions and low-end markets can be great places to buy, but make sure you go in well armed with knowledge of what you are doing. Dealers are also a great place to buy and you shouldn’t get hung up about paying a “market” price, for you usually get what you pay for. The important thing is to end up with a print that fits your needs and is what you think it is, for from such prints you will derive long term enjoyment and value.

A PRINT BUYER’S GUIDE: Part I: Criteria

Antique prints come in large variety of sizes, subjects and prices. One thing in favor of buying prints is that one can find attractive antique maps and prints that will fit your decorative needs at relatively moderate prices. Indeed, the reason that the majority of prints were made was to provide the general public with decoration at affordable prices. This is something that prints do very well.

As long as you are merely looking for attractive images to hang in your home or work place, if you find something you like the look of and you pay only what is appropriate for a decorative item, then it really doesn’t matter if it is old or has any sort of historic significance or if you might be able to find it cheaper if you looked elsewhere. If you just want decoration and the price is reasonable, go ahead and buy it.

On the other hand, if you are looking for something that has some intrinsic historic or artistic value, or if you are building a collection, or if you are looking at a print that is has a more significant price, then you want to spend more time judging the print by a number of criteria. As discussed in an earlier blog, having criteria is part of what it is to be collector, but even for someone just looking to purchase one or more prints for decoration, it still makes sense to use criteria in order to judge whether to buy a particular print or not. Today I will discuss the criteria a print buyer should use in making such a decision.

Appeal:

The first criterion, of course, must be whether the print appeals to you. The most obvious way a print will appeal to someone is by its appearance—-you can find a print beautiful, striking, moving, or it may visually affect you in some other meaningful way. However, even a print which isn’t “attractive” in an aesthetic sense can be appealing for its humor, the message it presents, what it reminds you of, or in many other ways. Some buyers are looking only for “good investments,” in which case they don’t care if a print appeals to them or not; personally this approach is not one I like at all.

To me, prints are wonderfully appealing objects on many levels and I think it is a shame if someone purchases a print that doesn’t speak to him/her in some fashion or other. The Print Shop will certainly sell prints to those who don’t care about them in any personal way--those looking for an investment or someone just seeking something to cover a wall in an office--but I get much more pleasure when buyers love the prints they purchase. It is the feeling of sharing the joy of owning antique prints and maps which is at the core of why I went into this business and why I still love to come to work at the shop every day even after a quarter of a century.

My general advice, as I said above, is that if a print appeals to you and you aren’t paying more than what any decorative item would cost, then other factors don’t really matter that much. However, when you start spending more significant money, then it is important to consider other criteria.

Authenticity:

If you intend to purchase a “genuine” antique print then you should make sure that you are getting an antique. Traditionally, the term “antique” applies to objects over 100 years old. Now-a-days this is somewhat changing, with some more recent items sometimes considered to be antiques. For instance, World War I posters are under 100 years old (though soon they will pass the century mark), however most people would still consider them to be antiques. The main thing is to make sure the print you are considering is from the period you think it is from. A poster of the Battle of Little Big Horn might be “old,” but if it is from the 1950s, I would not consider this to be an antique.

Your best approach with this criterion is learn to be able to tell on your own whether an object is a real antique. If you are unsure, however, it is a good idea to get a written statement about the age of the print from the seller and a guarantee that it is that old. If you are unsure and the seller won’t guarantee the age, it is ok to purchase the print as long as you wouldn’t mind having spent the money if it turns out not to be a real antique.

Condition:

The condition of a print is very important in considering whether to buy it or not. Obviously, condition can affect what a print looks like. You might think that the big stain in the sky, or the tear through the bird’s body might not be that bad, but over the years these sort of blemishes can start to bother you. To some extent some paper toning and minor blemishes can make a print look more “antique” and so can actually have a positive effect on its appearance. However, it is important to make sure before buying that you will not come to regret the mat burn, tear, foxing, or other problems as time passes.

The issue of condition has a further impact beyond the visual, for condition can affect the value of a print. You should be able to purchase a print with condition problems for less than you would pay for one without those problems, but usually that still doesn’t make it a good idea. This is because you will not be able (unless you get the print conserved) to sell the print for as much nor as easily as you could for one in good shape. Prints in poor condition are always hard to sell even at a discounted price; it is always easier to resell a print in good shape for a reasonable price.

The effect of condition problems are not just aesthetic or financial, for they can actually threaten the survival of a print as well. The darkening of paper, mat burns, backing board burns and similar issues indicate that acid is present in the paper itself. This means that unless the print is deacidified, it will continue to get worse, eventually falling apart. Foxing can also continue to get worse and tears can widen. These and other condition problems are ticking time bombs and this should be factored into the decision whether to buy a print or not. If you are getting the print at a good price and you plan to have it restored, then it can be fine to buy a print in poor condition, but to buy, say, a stained Currier & Ives print for $50, which you then have to pay $200 to have conserved, does not make a lot of sense when you can buy another example of the same print in good shape for only $175-$200.

Two final thoughts on condition. First, if a print is one you really want and if it is quite rare, then it might make sense to buy one in rough condition, hoping in the long run to be able to trade up. If you do, though, it is important to at least have the print conserved so that it will survive into the future. The second thing to realize is that most prints that were framed more than about a couple decades ago are inevitably going to be in a harmful environment from improper framing. These prints will have condition problems even if these are not evident. If you buy a print that was framed some time ago, you can pretty much assume you will need to spend money to have it conserved.

Importance:

The importance of a print is a criterion that often affects the decision of whether to buy it or not, and this can mean a couple different things. For instance, prints can be historically important if they had a significant role in our past. A broadside from an election, a political cartoon that affected public policy, an iconographic image from American history, a print from the first natural history of American flora and fauna, the first map to show a new state or territory, and other prints and maps can have enough historic significance that this alone gives strong reason to consider purchasing them even if the price is relatively high.

A print can also be significant if you have a collection and it fills an important role in the theme of that collection. For most collections there are a number of major prints which should be in the collection. If one of these becomes available, and if you are unsure you will get another opportunity to get this print, then the importance of the print to the collection can be a very strong reason to buy it, with the other considerations (such as condition and price) often less important.

Scarcity:

As discussed in another blog, I do not think that scarcity-—in and of itself—-is that important a reason to purchase a print. However, if a print fits the other criteria well, and if you are unlikely find another, then you might consider purchasing a scarce print even if the price is fairly high or the condition less than desirable.

Price:

It is clear from the comments above that I think other criteria are often of more importance in considering whether to purchase a print than its price. However, that doesn’t mean that one wants to be a fool and pay a ridiculous price for a print. Even with the internet and the advent of markets like ebay, it is difficult to find comparable examples of any particular print or to find a price guide. In many circumstances, when a buyer comes across a print, there is no independent way to find out what a fair “market price” is for that print. I would guess that it won’t surprise my readers if I make the comment that there are some sellers who take advantage of this fact in order to market prints at prices that are outrageous; sometimes unintentionally and unknowingly but also sometimes very intentionally and knowingly.

So what is a buyer to do? If the price is not too high, then it probably isn’t worth worrying about too much. Even if you pay, for instance, $200 for a print that really should sell for about $100, in the long run this difference in price will not matter that much and the time and effort it would take to try to figure out if this is a fair price would probably not be worth it. For a more expensive print it matters more, so it can make sense to spend the time and effort. There are some price guides which you can find in libraries or which you can subscribe to on-line, and you can also try to search the internet for “comparable prices.” Experience is also important to help figure what a fair price is, for the longer one keeps an eye on what prints in general are selling for, the more one develops a sense of value which can be applied to a print you haven’t seen a price for before.

If you are looking at a print for sale at auction, then these suggestions are about the only ways you can try to insure you don’t pay to much. In contrast, if you are looking to buy a print from a dealer, then you also have the element of trust. There is no question that different dealers have different price structures (this will be the subject of a future blog), but most dealers will try to price their prints at a “fair market” price. Talking to other print buyers or getting to know a dealer should give you a sense of whether you feel that dealer is selling his/her prints for fair prices. It seems to me that this is what you should care about, viz. that the price is “fair,’ not that it is the lowest possible price you might be able to buy the print for. Don’t pay a fool’s price, but be willing to pay a market price.

The “market price” of prints always has a range; there is no single “fair” price for a print. As long as a print is priced fairly, the difference between whether it is selling at the top of the market vs. the bottom of the market should not be that big a factor in your decision of whether to buy or not. When buying a print, you should be more concerned with the print than with the deal. If a print meets your criteria and is priced fairly, the fact that you might be able to buy it for a bit less isn’t that important. Those who are always looking for the “best price” often get better prices than prints. If you wait to look for a better deal, the object may be gone and the next time you find one it may be a lot more expensive. My advice is not to be a fool, but also not to be a miser.

One final thought on price is that it is generally a good idea to buy the best quality of print you can afford (assuming the print meets your other criteria). Poorer quality prints rarely go up much in value and it is generally the best quality prints which increase the most in value. Also, over time the difference in cost will probably end up being insignificant while the pleasure of owning a better quality print will pay dividends over the years.

Go to part 2 of the Print Buyer's Guide, which discusses various sources from which to buy antique prints.

Value of religious prints

One of the most common types of prints we see at Antiques Roadshow and about which we get enquiries are religious themed prints. Be it an engraving of the Last Supper, a popular lithograph of Jesus, or a chromolithograph of the Holy Family, we see and get questions about religious prints all the time. This is not surprising, for as the Bible is the most common book, so religious prints are the most common type of print made and have been since the beginning of print making.

This should come as no surprise. There is a huge demand for religious prints. It has always been part of the Catholic Church that religious iconography has been an important part of life, but religious images are also important for members of most Christian denominations. Today, religious art plays a much smaller role in our lives than it used to; in the past, most homes in this country which had any art, would have had at least one religious painting or print. So it is not surprising that the number of religious prints made over the centuries is huge.

One of the results of this is that religious prints tend to have low values. Almost always, a religious print will have a lower value than a comparable print (say from the same date and by the same publisher) with another subject. The ubiquitous nature of religious prints means that they are relatively common and this keeps their value down. The same thing applies to Bibles, where the very large number in existence means that most Bibles sell for relatively low prices. It is hard for a seller to price a religious print very high when a buyer can probably find a dozen comparable ones that will be priced lower.

There are a couple of other reasons that religious prints tend not to sell for high prices. First is that much of the demand for religious prints has been a “mass market” demand for utilitarian images, not an elite demand for elaborately-done prints. That is, most people want a religious print in order to have a particular image to hang in their home or work place, not because they are looking for collectible and valuable print. Most of the religious prints that have been made were made in large numbers by relatively inexpensive processes: hand-colored lithographs in the mid-nineteenth century or chromolithographs later in the century or dot-matrix reproductive prints in the early twentieth century. This sort of print on any topic will tend not to have a high value, so this is another reason religious prints are generally low priced.

The final factor that keeps the value of religious prints low is that this theme is not currently one that a lot of people use to decorative their home or office. As noted above, in earlier times religious prints would have been the most typical type of image one would see hanging in homes and elsewhere. Today, it is much more the exception than the rule that religious prints are used in such situations.


So to sum up, the quality of most religious prints is “mass market,” the supply is huge, and the demand relatively low, and the result is that most religious prints tend to have low values.

It is important to make two caveats to these remarks. First is the obvious point that while the majority of religious prints are inexpensive, there are some very fine, expensive religious prints. An Old Master engraving of Madonna and Child or an exquisite eighteenth century mezzotint of Christ on the Cross certainly have significant value. The second point is that the low price of most religious prints does not mean in any sense that these prints are without inherent value. As I discussed with decorative prints, many prints are wonderful historic artifacts, decorative and meaningful images, even if they do not sell for much on the market. The three factors I discussed above mean that most religious prints have low prices; they do not mean that these are not prints worth having and appreciating for their inherent meaning and history.

Glass Transfer Painting

Today's post is by Kelli Lucas and it is about one of the more unusual types of antique "prints":


Throughout the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, printed paper was gobbled up as a consumer good. Cheaply made from inexpensive materials, prints of high and low quality were so ubiquitous in the early Atlantic world as to be nearly superfluous. Sometimes reduced to ephemera, prints nonetheless represented the highly refined crafts and technologies of engraving and printing images. Accessible in both material and subject, prints were the ideal form for manipulation and became fodder for authors of arts handbooks. As one such author, Robert Dossie, noted, glass transfer painting was such a simple endeavor that even those doubting their artistic abilities could attempt it with success.

Using readily-obtained art supplies and a commercially available engraving or mezzotint, one could easily mimic fashionable reverse-painted glass, utilizing a painting technique that bears some semblance to modern paint-by-number. After soaking an engraving for a few days (this step varies according to the instructor), the print was laid against the glass. Turpentine (or some variant medium) was then applied until the paper appeared transparent on the glass. Glass and paper were then left to dry, usually for more than one day. Once dry, the paper could be rubbed away with the fingertip, leaving only the transferred ink of the print. To complete the effect, the outlined and shaded design could be colored in with oil paints applied on the verso. Thus transformed, the print-cum-glass transfer painting could be suitably framed and displayed.

With greater detail and prose, Robert Dossie elaborates in Handmaid to the Arts (London: 1753):

Of the taking of mezzotinto prints on glass, and painting upon them with oil, or varnish colours.

The painting on glass, by means of mezzotinto prints, is performed by cementing the printed side of the prints to the surface of the glass, by the assistance of some glutinous body which will not dissolve in water; and then destroying the texture of the paper by water, so that it may be rubbed interely [sic] off from the cement upon the glass; leaving, at the same time, the whole of the ink of the print upon the cement, and glass, in the same manner as if the original impression had been made there; by which method, a complete drawing of the picture designed is obtained on the glass; and may be coloured by the use of oil, varnish, or water colours.

The method of preparing this is as follows.

Procure a piece of the best crown glass as near as possible in size to the print to be taken off; and varnish it thinly over with turpentine, rendered a little more fluid by the addition of oil of turpentine. Lay the print then on the glass beginning at one end; and pressing it gently down in every part in proceeding to the other: to prevent any vesicles of air being formed, in he laying it on, by the paper touching the cement unequally, in different parts; and to settle the whole more closely to the glass, it is well to pass over a wooden roller over it; which roller may be made of any kind of wood turned, and may be about two inches in diameter. Dry the glass, with the print thus laid upon it, at the fire, till the turpentine be perfectly hard; and afterwards moisten the paper well with water, till it be thoroughly soaked. Then rub off the paper intirely [sic] from the cement, by gently rolling it under the finger; and let it dry without any heat: the impression of the print will be found perfect on the glass; and may be painted over with either oil or varnish colours.

The choice and treatment of the colours for painting in this way upon glass, in either oil or varnish, my be the same as for any other method, and it is therefore needless to enumerate any further particulars….

[As quoted in Ann Massing, “From Print to Painting: The Technique of Glass Transfer Painting.” Print Quarterly, ed., David Landau. VI: 4: December 1989, 383-393.]

Dossie wrote largely to professional or would-be professional artisans, instructing them on a variety of technical issues, of which glass transfer painting was the simplest. But the ready availability of prints, sold in large numbers and for small prices, meant that they could exist as both finished product and raw material for the aesthetically-minded with leisure time and discretionary income. Accomplished women, especially, were expected to cultivate artistic abilities, including painting and drawing, as well as fine taste for art and style. Not unlike modern so-called “domestic goddesses,” these women were encouraged to use their time and talents to beautify their lives. From embroidery projects to drawing lessons, techniques were perfected in genteel homes to add beauty and refinement to the family environment. Glass transfer painting, which mimicked fashionable reverse-painted glass, was one pastime that retained popularity from the mid-eighteenth century through the mid-nineteenth.

As a process, glass transfer painting is fascinating, as it manipulates one material (paper) to produce something entirely other (glass). Amateur artists who worked with this process began with a finished objet d’art (that is, an engraving) and enhanced its properties, transforming it from ephemeral to substantial. Harder to cast aside and yet vastly more fragile, the engraving was made more precious by its transfer to glass, and more permanent. As pieces of paper, engravings and other prints have always been extremely fluid objects: they can easily be moved from one frame to another, or removed from a scrapbook to be tacked to a wall. For modern collectors and scholars, this ephemeral nature can be maddening: it is often difficult to find information on how prints were displayed and used within their period of production. But attaching a print to glass via transfer transformed the print from ephemera to object, an object that could be more easily preserved, collected, and studied over periods of time. Finding one such object today is a chance to learn about how prints were valued and which prints were particularly prized (presumably, one would not go to the trouble to make a glass transfer painting with an image one did not like).

In the last several years, our print shop has handled a small handful of such prints. One was a very fine image of George Washington, engraved by Jean Nicolas Laugier in 1839 after a painting by Léon Cogniet (which, itself, borrowed from Gilbert Stuart for Washington’s head). Its transformation from print to glass transfer painting illustrates a significant fashion in American culture: a penchant for images of George Washington. During his life and following his death, Washington was elevated to national symbol, and his image graced every possible object from water jugs to neckerchiefs. It is not surprising, then, that this particularly noble-looking portrait of the first president should be applied to glass, offering it a more permanent existence.

While we had the print in our shop, I took advantage of the opportunity to study it inside and out, hoping to learn more about the method itself. Looking on the back of the glass revealed a surface that reminded me of a modern paint-by-number picture. It reinforced Robert Dossie’s assertion that glass transfer painting was a practice that could be “very alluring,” as it allowed for “the production of pictures even without being able to draw” (Dossie, Preface, Handmaid to the Arts). The application of paint was done neatly, but without any great apparent skill.

The finished result, though, was quite impressive in its period frame. When imagined hanging over a fine Empire sideboard, with its polished brasses and gilt ornament, the picture looked sophisticated, indeed. We thoroughly enjoyed having it in the shop and look forward to finding other examples of this intriguing process.