Hand colored engraving with 5 figures of South Pacific natives and an Australian Aborigine, after an image in Parkinson's Journal of a Voyage to the South Seas.
1801. A German hand colored copper engraving from Becker's Taschenbuch for 1801; this plate showing 5 South Pacific natives, including Australian Aborigine, each posing with a different weapon, and numbered.
Number 2 of the 5 numbered images is after the earliest known image of an Australian Aborigine, by T. Chambers from Parkinson's 'Journal of a Voyage to the South Seas (1773). The Chambers image ("Two of the Natives of New Holland Advancing to Combat") shows 2 warriors; warrior number 2 in this German plate is taken directly from the left hand warrior, who holds up a shield in his left hand and a sword in his right.
No. 5 at the top of the plate; Sollerer del. at lower left; Cl. Kohl direxit lower right. A bit of fox spotting mostly at margins. 5 1/4 x 7 1/4" on paper 7 x 9" Very good overall. Item #21977
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