Lot 140
  • 140

[Patapsco Neck — War of 1812]

Estimate
25,000 - 35,000 USD
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Description

  • First View of the Battle of Patapsco Neck. Dedicated to Those Who Lost their Friends in Defence of their Country. Septr. 12 1814. [Baltimore: Andrew Duluc, 1814]
  • paper, ink
Etched view (15 1/4 x 19 5/8 in.; 388 x 498 mm), etched by Andrew Duluc, full contemporary handcoloring, A–N key identifying troops and other elements of the view. 

Tipped to an old mat board, browned, two repaired tears into image, margins chipped.

Literature

Deak, Picturing America 285

Condition

Etched view (15 1/4 x 19 5/8 in.; 388 x 498 mm), etched by Andrew Duluc, full contemporary handcoloring, A–N key identifying troops and other elements of the view. Tipped to an old mat board, browned, two repaired tears into image, margins chipped.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Catalogue Note

An exceptionally rare print of a pivotal battle of the War of 1812, showing the positions of the Maryland militia and the regular British troops, Boulden's house, the burning of a log cabin, and the movement of the celebrated, if controversial, British general Robert Ross.  The view was drawn and etched by Andrew Dulac, a corporal of the Baltimore Jaegers, a traditionally German company of the Maryland militia. On the view, they are called "Yagers," and they are positioned next to the log house, lower right, where they first met the British assault. Dulac completed the print scarcely two weeks after the battle and advertised his First View in the Baltimore American for September 28, 1814; it is the only contemporary view of the engagement. Dulac's view "telescopes time and space in recording everything significant that happened before the British retreat. The death of General Robert Ross which occurred out of sight and hours before is represented in the upper right background" (McCauley, Maryland Historical Prints). 

Very few of the original 1814 printings are known, including copies at the Library of Congress, the Maryland Historical Society, and the Enoch Pratt Free Library. The etched plate itself survived, however, and restrikes, not always recognized as such, were made at several points in the nineteenth century, making the identification of copies in institutional catalogues difficult.