Markob, Durham Shorthorn Bull of Corbon, Antique Print, 1873

This antique cattle print portrays Markob, the roan Durham Shorthorn bull of the state cattle farm at Corbon, drawn by H. Gobin and lithographed by Lehnert for the Vienna Exposition album of 1873. Markob, registered as 2,768 (H.B.F.), was born on 2 November 1865 at Corbon and is drawn at eighteen months. His sire Orion 1826 and dam Bernerette 1992 by Baltic 849 are named beneath him, and the blood is given as Bates. The sheet was printed by Lemercier.

Breed portraits of this kind were the state's argument for imported Shorthorn blood, and the pedigree lettering makes the plate a record of French cattle breeding as well as a handsome animal picture. It pairs with the portrait of the cow Emilie from the same farm.

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 marks and faint handling creases 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.