Muggletonian Celestial Prints
Mid 19th Century Oil Color Prints
Mid 19th Century Oil Color Prints
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System According to the Holy Scriptures |
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The Newtonian System of the Universe (with detail right) |
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The Newtonian System (with detail right) |
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The Newtonian System (with detail right) |
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System According to the Holy Scriptures (with detail right) |
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System According to the Holy Scriptures (with detail right) |
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Isaac Frost (after)
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A series of six astronomical engravings in tones of blue, white, yellow, and green, intended to demonstrate that the earth is at the center of the universe, based on planetary charts drawn by Isaac Frost, an artist and scientist associated with a Victorian sect known as the Muggletonians. They were printed by George Baxter, who employed his innovative oil color printing technique that permitted subtle gradations for a glowing effect and engraved by Chubb & Son, London.
The religious sect known as "Muggletonians" were originally formed during the aftermath of the English Civil War, in the 1650s, by cousins John Reeve and Lodowick Muggleton. According to Chapter XI of the Book of Revelations, God will appoint "two witnesses" to preach to the ungodly world in its final days. Reeves and Muggleton believed that they were these witnesses. The Muggletonians continued as a group well into the Victorian era with the last reported member surviving in the mid 20th Century. Isaac Frost was a scientist and prominent member of the sect in the mid 19th Century who was instrumental in the refinement of the Muggletonian's astronomical theory, as represented on these prints. They were originally published under the title Two Systems of Astronomy, 1846 and were likely circulated only to members of the sect. Frost and his brother Joseph, also edited the three-volume set of The Works of J. Reeve and L. Muggleton in 1832. George Baxter was a London printer who developed and patented an unusual method of printing using oil pigments. His works are rare, because although the graduations of colour produced are quite beautiful, the process was too expensive to sustain commercial manufacture. As opposed to the Christian view of a Holy Trinity, Muggletonians believed Christ the Son was in fact the true God, while the prophets Elijah and Moses watched over Heaven. In addition, they believed that God paid little attention to His creation, therefore rendering acts of faith and devotion such as prayer, worship, and martyrdom useless. Heaven was to be found on Earth, rather than in the afterlife, and Hell likewise existed within man. Ritual was minimal; meetings commonly took place in an inn or tavern, with a reading or two from the Bible, and the singing of the "Divine Songs" written by Muggleton and other members. |