Islander of Murderers Island, Tattooed Figure, Antique Hand-Colored Print, 1854

A man of the island lettered as Murderers Island, an original antique hand colored print of 1854, the coloring applied by hand over a printed outline. The caption below the figure reads INBOORLING VAN HET MOORDENAARS EILAND., meaning Native of Murderers Island.

The man stands full length, facing the viewer, on a small patch of sandy ground. His face and body, down to the ankles, are covered with fine curving tattoo patterns. He wears a tall headdress of red feathers over a band of flowers, a garland of colored flowers around his neck, and a skirt of green leaves hung from a flower garland at the waist. In his right hand, at the viewer's left, he holds a long bow, and in his left hand a long arrow with blue and red fletching that reaches to the ground. Dark bands circle his upper arms and one ankle.

No artist, lithographer or publisher is named on the plate, and there is no plate number above or below the image; the printed caption is the only lettering on the sheet.

The plate comes from the second volume, the Tweede Deel, of De Volken van den Aardbodem, the Dutch edition of Heinrich Berghaus's illustrated work on the peoples of the world, translated from the German by M. J. van Oven and published at Gorinchem by J. Noorduyn en Zoon in 1854. The title page of the volume announces 120 extra fine plates colored after nature. Berghaus was a German geographer, best known for his Physikalischer Atlas.

Light uneven toning, browner towards the edges. Marked handling soiling along all four edges. Foxing over much of the margin. Slight wear at the bottom left and bottom right corners. Minor edge wear, shallow nicks along the right.

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