Church of St. Paul, Antwerp, Interior, Steel Engraving after T. Allom, c. 1850

A steel engraving of the interior of the Church of St. Paul in Antwerp, after Thomas Allom, engraved by J.C. Varrell.

The view runs down the length of the church under pointed Gothic vaults to the great Baroque high altar, which glows at the end of the nave. Along the left wall a row of large paintings hangs above carved wooden paneling lined with life size statues, a massive round pillar stands at right, and a carved pulpit rises beyond it. A woman kneels on the patterned floor in the foreground.

The plate is lettered "T. Allom" and "J.C. Varrell", with the title "Church of St. Paul's, Antwerp" and the imprint "Peter Jackson, London and Paris". Allom's Belgian views were first issued by Fisher, Son and Co. and later reissued under the Peter Jackson imprint, so this impression is dated circa 1850.

St. Paul's was the church of the Dominicans in Antwerp and is famous for its Baroque furnishings and its series of paintings of the Mysteries of the Rosary, with works by Rubens, Van Dyck and Jordaens; the paintings along the wall in this view recall that series.

A striking interior for a library or study, and a fine piece for a collector of church architecture. The engraved image measures about 11.5 by 17.7 cm (height by width), and the margins around it carry all the original lettering, which is worth keeping visible in the mat.

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