Swiss Woman, Swiss Bridal Couple and a Milkman of the Canton of Bern, 1842

This original antique lithograph, hand colored, is from the Galleria Universale di Tutti i Popoli del Mondo (Venice, Giuseppe Antonelli, 1842). In the upper image a woman in a small straw hat, black bodice, white puffed sleeves and blue skirt leans on a wooden fence at left. At right a bridal couple, both in straw hats trimmed with flowers: the bride in a white dress embroidered with pink roses and a pink scarf, the groom in a yellow green embroidered waistcoat and breeches, carrying a staff topped with a horn and decked with flowers and ribbons. In the lower image a woman in a great black lace headdress, white sleeves and pink striped skirt carries a wooden pail; beside her a milkman in a blue cap and red waistcoat with a tall basket on his back and a small pail in his hand, and at right a peasant woman in a white headscarf, red bodice and checked apron, holding an umbrella, with baskets at her feet.

The top margin is lettered "Tav. 59", "SVIZZERA" and "Tom IV". The upper captions read "Donna Svizzera" (Swiss woman) and "Sposi Svizzeri" (Swiss bridal couple). The lower caption reads "Donna Svizzera. Lattajuolo e Contᵃ del Canton di Berna" (Swiss woman. Milkman and peasant woman of the canton of Bern).

Dairying was central to the economy of the Bernese countryside, as the milkman and his wooden pails suggest. The large lace wings of the headdress and the puffed sleeves are features of the women's dress of the region.

Bright and full of detail, this plate is well suited to a group of Swiss or Alpine prints.

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