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British Fire Engines. First Alarm. A struggle for the Start. [/] Near Approach. Take care, take care, we ar very near it now. [/] The Fire. See that no Lives are lost. [/] The Ruins. The Fire is out & now for Home.
H. Alken Del.t. B. Hughes. Sculp.t.
Lewis & Co. 79, Leadenhall St. London. [n.d., c.1860].
Very rare aquatint. Overall sheet size: 300 x 370mm (11¾ x 14½"). False margin at bottom edge. Creases. Repaired tear to top edge.
Four scenes on one sheet illustrating the stages of a fire; from the first alarm, in the top left, with a horse drawn fire engine from the 'Sun Fire Office 1820' racing along a street watched by onlookers; to the approach to the fire in the top right, where a fire engine inscribed 'Atlas Office' halts as it reaches the scene; then in the bottom left is the fire itself, as two fire engines, one named 'Westminster', pump water into a burning building, smoke billowing from the windows, with the sign above the door to the right reading, 'Fire Proof Linnen'; finally in the bottom right is a view of the ruins of the building, with the firefighters packing up two engines inscribed 'London', and 'County Fire Office 1800'. A very rare print after English painter and engraver Henry Alken (1785 - 1851), chiefly known as a caricaturist and illustrator of sporting subjects and coaching scenes.
[Ref: 33565] £650.00
[Plate 4: Fireman.]
[Drawn & engraved by William Henry Pyne.]
Published by William Miller, Albemarle Street Jan.y 1. 1805.
Aquatint with fine hand colour. Sheet 360 x 255mm (14¼ x 10"), with 2pp. letterpress. Trimmed within plate.
A fireman working for the Sun Fire Office, standing before a fire engine. The letterpress records the history of insurance, five instances where fire nearly destroyed London, the fireman's uniform and the abilities of the fire engine. From 'The Costume of Great Britain', a book containing 60 plates of people at work and scenes of everyday life. William Henry Pyne (1769-1843), the son of a London weaver who became an artist and writer, was commissioned to write and illustrate the book by the publisher, William Miller of Albermarle Street, London. The illustrations are particularly notable as they portray British life on the eve of the Industrial Revolution. Abbey Life 430.
[Ref: 52044] £140.00
(£168.00 incl.VAT)
[4. Fireman.]
[Drawn & engraved by William Henry Pyne.]
Published by William Miller, Albemarle Street Jan.y 1. 1805.
Hand coloured etching with aquatint. Sheet 340 x 250mm (13¼ x 10").
A fireman holding an axe in one hand and a flare in the other, the logo of the Sun Fire Office on his arm. Behind him is a water wagon, with a dozen men manning the pump, another the hose. The print was published in 'The Costume of Great Britain', a work notable for portraying British life on the eve of the Industrial Revolution. Abbey Life 430.
[Ref: 28717] £80.00
(£96.00 incl.VAT)
London Fire Engines. The Nobel Protectors of Lives & Property. Dedicated to the Insurance Offices, by their Obedient Servant, Thos. McLean.
James Pollard Pinx.t. R. G. Reeve Sculp.t.
Published by Thos. McLean, 26 Haymarket. [n.d., c.1830].
Hand coloured aquatint with etching. Printed area: 520 x 750mm (20¼ x 29½"). Unexamined out of frame. Slightly time stained.
A night scene in London, showing three horse-drawn fire engines racing down a street towards a burning building on the far left, where a group of firemen are spraying a hose into the upper window. Many figures on the street are watching and running towards the scene, with several more watching from the windows above shops; 'Corn Dealer and Hay Salesman', 'Haberdasher and Silk Mercer' and 'Cabinet Maker, Upholster and Undertaker'. The fire engines are inscribed, from left to right, 'County Fire Office, [Reg]ent Street', 'Westminster Fire Office, Established 1717, King Street Covent Garden', and 'Phoenix Fire Office, Lombard Street & Charing Cross'.
[Ref: 33617] £650.00
Fire-Engine Presented to F. Hodges, Esq., of Lambeth, For valuable Services rendered by his efficient Brigade in extinguishing Fires; Manufactured by Merryweather & Sons, of Long Acre, and Lambeth, London.
Savill and Edwards, Printers, Chandos Street, Covent Garden [n.d., c.1865].
Wood engraving, manufacturer's promotional handbill/supplement; sheet 260 x 325mm. 10¼ x 11¾". Folds, as usual, some tearing at extremities; some marginal spotting.
The illustration shows Victorian ladies and gentlemen admiring a rather elaborately-decorated horse-drawn fire engine; list of prizes won by the engine at various industrial exhibitions below. Merryweather and Sons, one of the leading makers of fire engines throughout the 19th century.
[Ref: 20489] £160.00
(£192.00 incl.VAT)
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