Moor of Algiers, North African Costume, Antique Hand-Colored Print, 1854

Moor of Algiers, 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 MOOR VAN ALGIERS., which reads in English as Moor of Algiers. The plate shows a single standing man in town dress. The coloring is applied by hand over a printed outline.

He faces the viewer at full length, his head turned slightly to the right, with a full moustache and a tall turban wound in pink and green, a blue tassel falling from it at the left. He wears a pink jacket under a dark waistcoat edged with rows of small buttons and gold ornament, a striped sash in yellow, pink and blue, and very full white trousers gathered at the knee, with black slippers on bare feet. A light cane rests in his left hand, and a pale cloak is folded over his left arm, its end trailing down behind him to the ground. The ground is sketched in with a few lines of hatching and a 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. Algiers was taken by France in 1830, about two decades before this volume appeared.

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 right corner. Minor edge wear, shallow nicks along the right.

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