Fingal's Cave, Staffa, Antique View of the Basalt Columns, circa 1850

Fingal's Cave on the island of Staffa, an original antique steel engraving, uncolored, circa 1850. The caption below the image reads DIE FINGALS-HÖHLE, that is, Fingal's Cave.

The dark mouth of the cave opens at the center of the plate between ranks of tall, closely packed basalt columns that run along the left side and on toward the right, all capped by a heavy mass of rock. Heavy surf breaks against the columns and into the cave, and the broken stumps of columns stand out of the water at the left and in the foreground. Seabirds fly in and out of the cave and over the cliff. At the right the view opens onto the sea, where a pale half disc sits on the horizon, a steamship trails smoke in the distance and a dark rock stands out of the waves.

No artist or engraver is named on the plate. The imprint at lower left reads Aus d. Kunstanst. d. Bibliogr. Inst. in Hildbh. (from the art works of the Bibliographisches Institut in Hildburghausen), and at lower right Eigenthum d. Verleger (property of the publishers). The plate number CCCXXX is engraved at the top right.

The sheet comes from a dealer's album rather than from a bound set. Meyer's Universum was a serial collection of engraved views with descriptive text, published by Joseph Meyer's Bibliographisches Institut at Hildburghausen from 1833, its plates engraved on steel. Staffa lies off the west coast of Mull in the Inner Hebrides, and Felix Mendelssohn's visit to the cave in 1829 inspired his Hebrides overture.

Handling soiling along the bottom and left edges. A few small foxing spots in the margin. Corners and edges are not shown by this scan. Clean, even paper tone in the margin. Several larger brown marks.

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