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Henry Corbould (1787-1844) (designer) Perkins & Bacon (engravers) G. Woodfall, Angel Court, Skinner Street, London (printer) Astronomia F.G. Moon, 20 Threadneedle Street, London: 1829-31 Hand-colored engravings with plain backs 47 (of 52) cards in book-shaped wooden box with booklet of rules 4 x 2 1/2 inches $1,800 |
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Deck of educational astronomy cards pertaining to the zodiac constellations and the solar system. The cards are divided into four series identified by the different coloring of the drapery hanging from the top border flanked by pillars. Stars, planets, and astronomical phenomena are rendered in shades of black and white, as if the night sky was being viewed through a draped window.
The four series correspond to the seasons of the year: spring is blue, summer is red, autumn is yellow, and winter is white. Each suit has two leading cards that vary with each suit: the zodiacal card, showing the sign in which the sun appears, i.e., Aries, Cancer, Libra & Capricorn, and the luminary card, i.e. Moon, Sun, Comet of 1680 and Orbits. The two leading cards are complemented with 11 planetary cards that remain the same in all the suits: Jupiter, Saturn, Herschel (Uranus), Tellus (Earth), Venus, Mars, Mercury, Pallas, Juno, Ceres & Vesta. In book-shaped wooden box. The inside of the lid is adorned by a paste-down engraved frontispiece cartouche-form design entitled "Astronomia" featuring a classical female figure of astronomy with globe, armillary sphere, and octant above two studious cherubs flanking crossed telescopes. Booklet of rules included. Henry Corbould was a British painter and illustrator, a member of a family of artists that included his father, brother and son. He won a silver medal for life drawing at the Royal Academy schools and exhibited paintings in the style of Johann Heinrich Fÿseli, illustrating the literary works of Homer, Milton and Shakespeare. He went on to have a successful career in book illustration, including Byron's Don Juan (1823) and The Book of Poets (1844). Corbould also spent 30 years working as an illustrator at the British Museum, London, making precise drawings of their antiquities, and was hired to draw several other institutional collections as well. Provenance: U.S. Games Systems, Inc. and the Stuart and Marilyn R. Kaplan Playing Card Collection. Condition: Generally very good with the usual light toning, wear, soiling, worn edges. Box considerably worn. Zodiacal & Luminary cards of Summer; Luminary, Mars and Vesta cards of Spring lacking. Reference: "Grove Dictionary of Art Artists' Biographies: Henry Corbould," Macmillan: 2000, http://www.artnet.com/library/01/0194/T019429.asp |