Grosvenor Prints

Abelard.
D. Gardner Pinx.t. Tho.s Watson fecit.
London Publish'd May 28th 1782 by Tho.s Watson, 33 Strand.
Mezzotint, 18th century watermark, 260 x 195mm (10¼ x 7¾"). Small margins.
Imaginary portrait of medieval philosopher Pierre Abelard (1079-1142). This print was published as a pair with an image of Héloïse d'Argenteuil, his lover with whom he corresponded after they were separated (hence the paper and quill). Alexander Popes' poem about the couple ensured their popularity as a subject for artists in the 18th century.
Whitman 27.
[Ref: 60124] £230.00 (£276.00 incl.VAT)

Lord Apsley and his Brother.
Painted by N. Dance R.A. 1775. Engraved by Tho.s Watson.
London, publish'd June 28th 1776, by Tho.s Watson, No 142, New Bond Street, & W.Dickinson, Henrietta Street, Covent Garden.
Mezzotint. 510 x 360mm (20 x 14¼") very large margins. Repairs to plate mark and margins.
The two sons of Henry, 2nd Earl Bathurst (who had Robert Adam build Apsley House in London for him). The elder is Henry (1762-1834), lord of the admiralty from 1783 to 1789; 3rd Earl Bathurst from 1794; Foreign Secretary for two months in 1809; Secretary of State for War and the Colonies from 1812-27. Bathurst in New South Wales, Australia, is named after him.
CS: 1. Goodwin: 28, iii of iii.
[Ref: 56669] £420.00

Billiards.
H.Bunbury Esq.r Delin.t. Watson & Dickinson Excud.t.
[London, Publish'd Nov.r 15th 1780 by Watson & Dickinson, No. 158 New Bond Street.]
Stipple. Sheet 280 x 430mm (11 x 17"), with an 18th century watermark. Trimmed into plate top and bottom, losing publication line.
The famous caricature of a billiards game by Henry William Bunbury (1750-1811), probably inspired by the introduction of leather-tipped cues, as used here.
BM: 5803; see F.L. Wilder, 'English Sporting Prints', pp.190-1.
[Ref: 58476] £420.00

[Circe]
Painted by D Gardner. Engrav'd by T Watson.
Publish'd Nov.r 1st. 1778, for T Watson.
Scratched letter proof mezzotint before title, plate 250 x 195mm (9¼ x 7¾"), with large margins.
Imaginary portrait of the Greek mythological entrantress Circe. A half length front facing portrait of a young woman within an oval frame. She holds a cup in her left hand and a wand in the other, wearing a pale gown and dark cloak, her hair dressed half up with a circlet.
CS 39 page 1565.
[Ref: 61585] £230.00 (£276.00 incl.VAT)

[Circe]
Painted by D Gardner. Engrav'd by T Watson.
London, Publish'd Nov.r 1st. 1778, for T Watson.
Scratched letter proof mezzotint, plate 250 x 195mm (9¼ x 7¾"), with small margins. Bit messy.
Imaginary portrait of the Greek mythological entrantress Circe. A half length front facing portrait of a young woman within an oval frame. She holds a cup in her left hand and a wand in the other, wearing a pale gown and dark cloak, her hair dressed half up with a circlet.
[Ref: 55997] £230.00 (£276.00 incl.VAT)

The Confidants or Le Billet Doux.
E.Martin pinx. T.Watson Excudit.
London, Publish'd May 20th 1780 for Watson & Dickinson No. 158 New Bond Street.
Sepia mezzotint. 255 x 180mm. Crease in title area.
[Ref: 4112] £160.00 (£192.00 incl.VAT)

[Frances Anne Crewe.]
Painted by D. Gardner. Engraved by Tho.s Watson.
London. Publish'd April 20th 1780 by Watson & Dickinson No. 158. New Bond Street.
Stipple, proof before title. Sheet: 275 x 210mm (10¾ x 8¼''). Trimmed.
A very pretty portrait, set in a roundal, of Mrs Crewe (1744-1818) shown in a landscape. Wife of John Crewe, 1st Baron Crewe.
Goodwin 40. See ref: 48250 for coloured example.
[Ref: 48487] £140.00 (£168.00 incl.VAT)

[Henry Frederick, Duke of Cumberland.] [&] Her Royal Highness Anne Dutchess of Cumberland.
Painted by Sir Joshua Reynolds. Engraved by Tho.s Watson. [&] S.r Johua Reynolds Pinx.t. James Watson fecit.
Published May 20th 1774 for W.r Shropshire, No. 158, and T. Watson, No. 142, New Bond Street. [&] Publish'd according to Act of Parliament Decem.r 1st 1773 by James Watson, No 34 in Little Queen Street near Portland Chapel.
Pair of mezzotints. 620 x 390mm (24½ x 15¼") & 680 x 380mm (26¾ x 15") including separately-printed title. Some toning; Henry with small tears just entering plate, som repaired, and wear to the bottom margin; Anne laid on archival paper.
Prince Henry (1745-90), Duke of Cumberland and Strathearn, and his wife Anne Horton (1743-1808), a commoner. Their marriage led to the Royal Marriages Act 1772, which forbade any descendant of George II to marry without the monarch's permission. There is no sign of the usual title plate on Henry.
CS T. Watson 11 & J. Watson 37, state ii of iii.
[Ref: 52951] £480.00 view all images for this item

His Royal Highness Will.m, Duke of Cumberland.
J. Reynolds. T. Watson fec.t.
London Printed for H. Parker opposite Birchin Lane Cornhill [n.d., c.1770].
Mezzotint. 155 x 115mm (6 x 4½") large margins
Half-length portrait of Prince William (1721-65), Duke of Cumberland and Strathearn, wearing uniform and sash.
[Ref: 57240] £240.00 (£288.00 incl.VAT)

[Miss Dempster.]
G. Willison. T. Watson.
Publishd as the Act directs Oct.r 1.st 1771.
Mezzotint with small margins, proof before title, rare. Plate 501 x 355mm (19¾ x 14").
Portrait standing three-quarter length to right leaning on rock, her right hand to her cheek, head turned to face left over her shoulder, with basket of flowers to right; with robe draped over her right shoulder, and scarf in her hair; landscape seen behind. Portrait after George Willson (1741-97), a Scottish artist whose career owed much to his uncle George Dempster, director of the East India Company and a key figure in the Scottish Enlightenment. Dempster sponsored Willison's artistic training in London and Rome, and subsequently secured him a position at the court of Mohamed Ali Khan Walejah, Nawab of the Carnatic. The sitter in this portrait is probably Dempster's daughter.
CS 12: i. Goodwin 11: i.
[Ref: 28895] £550.00

Diana
Painted by J. Nixon Member of the Royal Academy. Engraved by Tho.s Watson.
London, Published Feb.y 1st 1780 for Watson & Dickinson No 158 New Bond Street
Rare stipple, platemark 240 x 180mm (9½ x 7") very large margins.
Diana, goddess of the hunt, holding a javelin. Engraved after a miniature by James Nixon (bap.1741-1812), miniature painter who painted theatrical celebrities and scenes from literature. He was miniature painter to the duchess of York from 1792 and limner to the prince of Wales from 1803.
Goodwin 64
[Ref: 40470] £180.00 (£216.00 incl.VAT)

Lady Gideon.
S.r Jos. Reynolds. Pinx.t. Watson Fecit.
R. Sayer Excudit. Published as the Act directs 1st Jan.y 1771.
Mezzotint, scarce. Plate: 400 x 290mm (15¾ x 11½"). Small margins
A profile portrait, set in an oval of Maria Baroness Eardley (1743-1794).
CS 17; Hamilton page: 101; Goodwin 7
[Ref: 47588] £260.00 (£312.00 incl.VAT)

Les Oyes de Frere-Philippe. Friar-Phillip's Geese, A Tale from La Fontaine. O l'agréable Oiseau...
H. Bunbury Esq.r. delin.t. Engrav'd by Tho.s. Watson.
London Publish'd Oct.r. 3.d. 1782, by T. Watson, No 33 Strand.
Stipple. Sheet: 370 x 415mm (14½ x 16¼"). Trimmed within plate, repairs. Damaged.
Two pretty young women stand playing lutes. Behind a friar restrains a young man who is desperate to approach them. A scene from Jean de la Fontaine's (1621-1695) fable 'Friar Phillipes Geese'. a tale in which a friar takes a boy into the wilderness and brings him up free from temptation. However, at the age of twenty the young man meets the young women and becomes besotted: when he asks his father what they are the friar replies that they are geese, a slang name for prostitutes.
[Ref: 55705] £190.00 (£228.00 incl.VAT)

[Elizabeth Percy, countess of Northumberland.]
Painted by Sir Peter Lely. Engrav'd by Tho.s Watson.
Publish'd Jan.y 10 1779 for W. Shropshire No 158, & T. Watson, No. 112, New Bond Street, London.
Fine mezzotint. 460 x 335mm (18 x 13¼"), with large margins. Paper tone. Stain top left margin.
Elizabeth Percy, countess of Northumberland (1646-90), courtier. A daughter of Thomas Wriothesley, fourth earl of Southampton (1607-77), Elizabeth married twice: firstly to Joceline Percy, eleventh earl of Northumberland; and secondly, after his death in 1670, to Ralph Montagu, first duke of Montagu. From a set of prints after a series of paintings by Sir Peter Lely of women at the court of Charles II, known as 'The Beauties of Windsor'.
CS 5 II of III; Goodwin 34 (4.) ii/iii. For others in the set see refs. 24903, 46988 & 43746
[Ref: 46880] £380.00

[The Right Reverend Thomas Newton D.D. Lord Bishop of Bristol, and Dean of St Pauls.]
Painted by Sir Joshua Reynolds. Engrav'd by Thos: Watson.
Publish'd May 1st 1775 for Thos: Watson No 142 New Bond Street.
Mezzotint, proof before title, 455 x 330mm. 18 x 13". Small margins.
Portrait of Thomas Newton (1704 - 1782), Bishop of Bristol from 1761; standing holding mortar board cap in left hand, wearing bishop's robes and short wig; curtain behind partially drawn to reveal St Paul's Cathedral at left. After Sir Joshua Reynolds (1723 - 1792).
Chaloner Smith 27, ii. Hamilton p.53, ii. Whitman: 23, ii/iii.
[Ref: 22370] £140.00 (£168.00 incl.VAT)

[Recruits.]
[W. H. Bunbury delin.t. Watson & Dickinson Excud.t.]
[London, Publish'd Jan.y 1.st 1780 by Watson & Dickinson No 158 New Bond Street.]
Scarce etching, unfinished proof before stippling and lettering. Sheet 325 x 270mm (12¾ x 10½"). Trimmed within platemark on three sides.
A motley group of recruits being drilled by two soldiers outside an inn called 'The Old Fortune'. The inn sign depicts a old soldier with one eye, arm and leg, begging. The second of a series by Bunbury, with 'A Visit to thje Camp' and 'Nancy', published during the American War of Independence.
[Ref: 56436] £180.00 (£216.00 incl.VAT)

[Rebeccas Rushout] [A Lady and her Children.]
Painted by D. Gardiner. Engraved by Tho.s Watson.
Publish'd Jan.y 1st 1778. for T. Watson no.142 New Bond Street, & W. Dickinson, Henrietta Street, Covent Garden, London.
Mezzotint, proof before title. 485 x 525mm (19 x 20¾"). Framed. Unexamined out of frame.
A superb impression of this group portrait of Lady Rebecca Rushout and her three eldest children by John Rushout, 1st Baron Northwick: Anne, Harriet, and John. Anne, Harriet and a third sister, Elizabeth, were dubbed 'The Charming Sisters' by the artist Andrew Plimer (1763-1837).
CS: 31. Goodwin 32, state ii of iv.
[Ref: 59437] £1,250.00

St. Caecilia. [Mrs. Sheridan as Saint Cecilia]
Painted by Sir Joshua Reynolds. Engraved by Thos. Watson.
London, Published July 20th. 1779 for Watson & Dickinson No. 158 New Bond Street.
Stipple engraving. 295 x 385mm. Trimmed to plate.
Elizabeth Sheridan, shown here in the guise of the patron saint of music, was a beautiful and talented singer. She was also the wife of the playwright and politician, Richard Brinsley Sheridan. After their marriage Sheridan prevented her from singing in public, even in Joshua Reynolds's house. [Tate]
Goodwin 37, i of iii.. Hamilton i of iii.
[Ref: 7041] £350.00

Sidgismonda.
Painted by F. Wheatley. Engrav'd by Tho.s Watson.
London, publish'd March 10th, 1779 by Dickinson & Watson No.158, New Bond - Street.
Mezzotint. Platemark: 260 x 195mm. (10¼ x 7¾"). Small piece missing from bottom left corner, and top left corner, outside platemark.
Sigismunda, a character from Boccaccio's 'Decameron', holding a chalice with the heart of her lover Guiscardo. Her father had Guiscardo murdered and sent his heart to Sigismunda, as a result of which she poisoned herself. One of two mezzotints for which Francis Wheatley produced designs before his Irish period, the other being 'Thais'. 'Amongst the most popular subjects of the early 1770s were single figures, usually allegorical, the allegory generally being either mythological [...] or literary' (Webster).
From the Oettingen-Wallerstein Collection. Webster: E8. For earlier state see ref. 7890; For 'Thais' see ref. 28425.
[Ref: 28424] £330.00

[Sidgismonda.]
Painted by F: Wheatley. Engrav'd by Thos: Watson.
London, Publish'd March 10th. 1779, by Dickinson & Watson No.158, New Bond Street.
Mezzotint, proof before title, 265 x 200mm. Some age toning.
Sigismunda, a character in Giovanni Boccaccio's 'Decameron'. She was the daughter of Tancredi, Prince of Salerno, married to the Duke of Capua, and falls in love with her father's page, Guiscardo. She poisons herself, drinking from the cup in which her father sends her Guiscardo's heart, having murdered him. A strong impression.
Chaloner Smith 44, I of II. Goodwin 55, between I & II; for lettered state see ref. 28424
[Ref: 7890] £230.00 (£276.00 incl.VAT)

[A Storm with Lightening.]
H.Kobell P. Thomas Watson S.
Publish'd as the Act Directs Feb.y 7, 1771 for S. Hooper
Mezzotint, Sheet 455 x 555mm. Trimmed within plate, top edge chipped.
Two sailing ships on a storm-riven sea, the nearer seen from its stern as lightning strikes from a gap between the clouds in upper l, breaking the main-mast, two dolphins leaping to right, towards a plank of driftwood, and a fort on the cliffs to l; after Kobell; S. Hooper published state. 1771, this state published 1783.
Ex: Collection of The Hon. C. Lennox-Boyd.
[Ref: 3631] £350.00

The Strawberry Girl.
Painted by Sir Joshua Reynolds. Engrav'd by Tho.s Watson.
Publish'd Nov 1st 1774 for W.Shropshire, No. 158 & T.Watson, No 142, New Bond Street.
Mezzotint. 370 x 280mm (14½ x 11"), very large margins.
Possibly Theophilia Palmer, niece of Reynolds known as 'Offie'.
Goodwin, 52, iii of iv. CS 43, ii of iii.
[Ref: 61380] £370.00

Thais.
Painted by F. Wheatley. Engrav'd by Tho.s Watson.
London, publish'd March 10th, 1779, by Watson & Dickinson No. 158 New Bond Street.
Mezzotint with small margins. Platemark: 255 x 195mm. (10 x 7¾").
Thais, a prostitute of Athens; fictional character from the 'Eunuchus' by Terence. 'A subject which appealed equally to the moral and to the dissolute' (Webster). One of two mezzotints for which Francis Wheatley produced designs before his Irish period, the other being 'Sidgismonda'. Said to be a portrait of Emma Hart, later Lady Hamilton (see British Museum cataloguing ref: AN902405001), although she did not come to London until the early 1780s.
From the Oettingen-Wallerstein Collection. Webster: E9; Goodwin II of II. For 'Sidgismonda', see ref. 28424.
[Ref: 28425] £330.00

[Frances Countess of Jersey.]
D. Gardner Pinx.t. Tho.s Watson fecit.
Publish'd Feb.y 14.th 1774, for W. Shropshire, No. 158, & T. Watson, No. 142, New Bond Street.
Mezzotint. 260 x 195mm (10¼ x 7¾"). Surface scratch, small margins, tipped onto album sheet.
A portrait of Frances Villiers, Countess of Jersey (1753-1821) who was the mistress of George IV while Prince of Wales.
[Ref: 47259] £180.00 (£216.00 incl.VAT)

Sir William Wallace.
[n.d., c.1775.]
Mezzotint, proof before artist, sheet 355 x 250mm. 14 x 9¾". Repaired crack in platemark in right edge.
Sir William Wallace (1272?-1305), Scottish patriot and hero of romance. Engraved by Thomas Watson (1743 - 1781), after an unknown artist.
Chaloner Smith: 36, undescribed state.
[Ref: 39856] £240.00 (£288.00 incl.VAT)

[William Wallace.]
[n.d., c.1775.]
Mezzotint, proof before all letters, sheet 355 x 250mm. 14 x 9¾". Trimmed to plate. Tatty and chipped extremities.
Sir William Wallace (1272?-1305), Scottish patriot and hero of romance. Engraved by Thomas Watson (1743 - 1781), after an unknown artist.
NPG: D18738. Chaloner Smith: 36, undescribed state.
[Ref: 10015] £130.00 (£156.00 incl.VAT)

[Lady Whitmore, From the Original Picture in His Majesty's Collection at Windsor.]
Painted by Sir Peter Lely. Engrav'd by Thomas Watson.
Publish'd Jan.y 1.st 1778, for T. Watson, No.142., & W: Shropshire, No.158, New Bond-Street, London.
Mezzotint. 455 x 330mm (18 x 13"). Thread margins. Slight loss in margin bottom left.
Lady Frances Whitmore (c.1643-1690), daughter of Sir William Brooke and wife of Sir Thomas Whitmore. From a set of prints after a series of paintings by Sir Peter Lely of women at the court of Charles II, known as 'The Beauties of Windsor'. The portraits were commissioned by Anne Hyde, first wife of James II (then Duke of York).
Goodwin: 34; CS 5 ii/iii.
[Ref: 46988] £320.00

[Lady Whitmore, From the Original Picture in His Majesty's Collection at Windsor.]
Painted by Sir Peter Lely. Engrav'd by Thomas Watson.
Publish'd Jan.y 1.st 1778, for T. Watson, No.142., & W: Shropshire, No.158, New Bond-Street, London.
Mezzotint, platemark 457 x 330mm (18 x 13"), with very large margins. Crease lower left. Good impression.
Lady Frances Whitmore (c.1643-1690), daughter of Sir William Brooke and wife of Sir Thomas Whitmore. From a set of prints after a series of paintings by Sir Peter Lely of women at the court of Charles II, known as 'The Beauties of Windsor'. The portraits were commissioned by Anne Hyde, first wife of James II (then Duke of York).
Goodwin: 34; CS 5 ii/iii;
[Ref: 43746] £320.00

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