Sintra near Lisbon, Portugal, Antique View of the Serra, circa 1850

A view of the town and hills of Sintra, near Lisbon, an original antique steel engraving, uncolored, circa 1850. The caption beneath the image reads CINTRA BEI LISSABON / in / Portugal., in English Sintra near Lisbon in Portugal.

Jagged rocky peaks of the serra rise along the skyline under heaped clouds, with the town spread on the wooded slope below them at the left of center. Dense trees fill the right half of the middle distance above a calm stretch of water. In the left foreground a road comes forward past a mill with two large water wheels fed by a wooden flume, and a stone bridge of two arches crosses the stream. Three donkeys walk along the road with a figure behind them, and a young man sits on a felled log by the water, with more logs and a rough fence beside him.

The engraver's credit at the lower right, below the image, reads Stahlst. B. Metzeroth. (steel engraved by B. Metzeroth). Below the caption, the imprint at the left reads Aus d. Kunstanstalt d. Bibliogr: Instit: in Hildbh. (from the art works of the Bibliographisches Institut in Hildburghausen), and at the right Eigenthum der Verleger. (property of the publishers). The plate number XXXVIII is engraved at the top right, above the image.

The imprint is that of Meyer's Universum, a serial collection of engraved views with descriptive text, published by Joseph Meyer's Bibliographisches Institut at Hildburghausen from 1833, its plates engraved on steel. The sheet comes from a dealer's album rather than from a bound set. Sintra was a summer residence of the Portuguese court.

Handling soiling along the right and top edges. Scattered light foxing in the margin. Corners and edges are not shown by this scan. Clean, even paper tone in the margin. Several larger brown marks.

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