Mingrelian Man of Western Georgia, Antique Hand-Colored Costume Print, 1854

Mingrelian Man of Western Georgia, an original antique hand colored print of 1854 from the second volume of Heinrich Berghaus's work on the peoples of the world in its Dutch edition. The plate is captioned in Dutch MINGRELIËR., which reads in English as Mingrelian. The plate shows a single walking man carrying grapes. The coloring is applied by hand over a printed outline.

He is shown in mid-stride across a hilly landscape, his face turned to the right, with a moustache under a conical yellow hat. On his back he carries a large basket filled with bunches of grapes and vine leaves, hung from a forked stick that he holds in his right hand over his left shoulder, and in his left hand he holds a second, smaller basket of grapes. He wears a loose green tunic over red sleeves, a yellow sash with a yellow pouch hanging from it, red and blue hose, and soft laced footwear. A few tufts of grass and the line of distant hills are touched in with pale wash.

The caption is the only lettering on the sheet. No artist, lithographer or printer is named on the plate, and it carries no plate number. The figure stands on the plain paper of the page with no frame line, and the caption is printed in small capitals below.

The plate comes from the second volume 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. Mingrelia is a historic region of western Georgia, on the plain inland from the Black Sea coast.

Light uneven toning, browner towards the edges. Marked handling soiling along all four edges. Scattered light foxing in the margin. Slight wear at the bottom right corner.

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