Sheep in a Mountain Landscape after Rosa Bonheur, Photogravure, circa 1880

A flock of sheep on a rocky mountain slope under drifting cloud. In the foreground a dark-fleeced ram lies on the turf, head raised in profile, while a horned ram with a heavy pale fleece stands on a flat slab of rock behind him, head lowered. Three more sheep graze among the stones at left, and on the higher ground at right others rest or wander near an outcrop. Beyond them a jagged peak rises out of the mist.

The picture is a study of animals in their setting more than a pastoral scene: there is no shepherd, and the attention goes to the weight of the fleeces, the set of the horns and the rough grass and stone of the hillside.

The plate is after Rosa Bonheur (1822 to 1899), the celebrated French animal painter. The margin reads "Rosa Bonheur del.", indicating that the original was her drawing, and her signature "R. Bonheur" appears in the lower right of the image. The line "Photogravure & Imp. Goupil & Cie" names the Paris house that made and printed it.

Photogravure gives the image soft, continuous tones of gray, from the pale mountain mist to the dark fleece of the ram, with clear detail in the grass and the textures of the rock. The cloud and peak at upper left are handled almost like a wash drawing.

A natural fit for a country house, a study or a room with an outdoor theme, framed simply in oak or walnut.

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