Italian Hand Colored Engraving by Johann Heinrich Wilhelm Tischbein: Based on the Original Collection of Sir William Hamilton's Ancient Vases

A tall column stands between two women, one offering a dish and the other carrying a pair of torches.

This hand colored engraving, based on the original collection of Sir William Hamilton's ancient vases, is after Johann Heinrich Wilhelm Tischbein, from Naples, Italy, around 1791, in ink on paper. Tischbein was then director of the academy of painting in Naples, and the plates are known for their clean outlines, meant to serve artists and designers as much as scholars. The women wear long pleated garments and headbands, one holding a twisted staff. The plain orange column rises between them on the black ground. The image is 8.75 inches wide and 8.38 high, within a pale platemark.

Very little furniture, but excellent posture.