Emilie, Durham Shorthorn Cow of Corbon, Antique Print, 1873

This antique cattle print portrays Emilie, the roan Durham Shorthorn cow of the Vacherie de Corbon, drawn by H. Gobin and lithographed by Lehnert for the Vienna Exposition album of 1873. Emilie, registered as 3276 (H.B.F.), was born on 19 November 1861 at the Vacherie de Corbon and is shown at five years old. Her sire Osborn 1026 and dam Tanaide 652 by Tinker 330 are recorded beneath her, with the Bates and Lord Spencer blood.

She stands in a Norman meadow with the rest of the herd behind her, and she makes a natural pair with the bull Markob. The pedigree lettering gives the plate real documentary value for the history of Shorthorn breeding in France.

The sheet comes from the folio of maps, plans and drawings that the Direction de l'Agriculture of the French Ministry of Agriculture and Commerce assembled for its own exhibit at the Exposition Universelle held in Vienna in 1873, printed in Paris by the Imprimerie Nationale. The album gathered the statistical cartography, the model state farms, the breed portraits and the prize silver by which France meant to present its agriculture to the world. Its thematic maps belong to the first generation of printed statistical mapping, a field now collected for the history of data visualisation quite as much as for the history of farming.

The print is a chromolithograph, printed in color, issued in 1873. The color is printed rather than applied by hand. This antique cattle print would suit a farmhouse kitchen, a study or a country interior, and it will interest collectors of animal art, French cattle breeds and agricultural history alike.

The sheet is in good condition, with age toning, scattered foxing and light fading. Minor marginal discoloration and faint handling marks are visible. The toning is the ordinary result of age rather than damage. Please see the images for a full view of the condition.

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