A Gothic Church in Antwerp and a Park in Brussels, Hand Colored Lithograph, 1842

An original antique lithograph with hand coloring, from the Galleria Universale di Tutti i Popoli del Mondo (Venice, Giuseppe Antonelli, 1842). The upper view is printed sideways, to be read with the sheet turned: it shows a Gothic church with a tall openwork spire rising behind a square lined with tall gabled houses, some with red roofs, and small figures in colored dress gathered along the street. The lower view shows a park with tall poplars along a sandy walk at left, a lawn in the center and a large tree in the foreground. Couples in top hats and long dresses stroll on the paths, a woman in yellow walks with children, and a statue group on a tall pedestal stands among the trees at right. Behind them rises a classical building with a columned portico and pediment.

The top margin is lettered Tom. IV at upper left, "BEGLIO ED OLANDA" at center and Tav. 81 at upper right. The heading is printed with the misspelling "BEGLIO" for "BELGIO" (Belgium and Holland). The captions read "Anversa" (Antwerp), lettered vertically beside the upper view, and "Brusselles" (Brussels).

Antwerp is the port city on the Scheldt, and Brussels has been the capital of Belgium since its independence in 1830. Both captions name only the city: the views show a church spire rising above a busy square, and a formal park with townspeople promenading in the fashions of the period.

Topographical plates of this kind make an attractive pair with costume plates from the same work, or a small group of city views.

This is an original antique print, not a modern reproduction. This item is sold unframed.