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Joseph Swain, engraver

Two Fire Engines, June 10, 1871

Description

Maker

  • After John Tenniel, 1820-1914, British
  • Joseph Swain, 1820 - 1909, British, engraver

Title

Two Fire Engines

Year

June 10, 1871

Medium

Wood engraving on paper

Materials/Techniques

Materials

  • wood engraving

Supports

  • Light weight cream wove paper

Dimensions

23.5 x 34.9 cm (9 5/16 x 13 11/16 inches) (plate) with inscription

Signature / Inscription / Marks

Captioned, LL:FRENCH-TO BE AVOIDED BY ENGLAND. ; captioned, LR:ENGLISH- TO BE BORROWED BY FRANCE.

Type

  • Works on Paper,
  • Prints

Credit

Anonymous gift

Object Number

77.096.1

Exhibition History

Exhibition History

Draw Me a Story

April 14 - July 23, 2006

Joseph Swain, the principal engraver at Punch during the second half of the 19th century, engraved most of Tenniel’s designs. Tenniel’s blocks were composed of up to twelve pieces of wood mortised together. The pieces could be separated and distributed among different carvers in Swain’s workshop.

The subject matter of the wood engraving is the Franco-Prussian War and the end of the French Commune, presented by Tenniel in the guise of two competing and variously successful fire companies.

Related

John Tenniel

Study for Right Half of Two Fire Engines, 1871

John Tenniel

Study for Left Half of Two Fire Engines, 1871

More objects +

Use

The images on this website can enable discovery and collaboration and support new scholarship, and we encourage their use. This object is in the public domain (CC0 1.0). This object is Two Fire Engines with the accession number of 77.096.1. To request high-resolution files or new photography, please send an email to imagerequest@risd.edu and include your name and the object's accession number.

Feedback

We view our online collection as a living documents, and our records are frequently revised and enhanced. If you have additional information or have spotted an error, please send feedback to curatorial@risd.edu.

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