COPPERPLATES AND RE-ISSUES

D10947
and
D10948
Samuel Horsley (1733-1806), re-published 1809

Horsley became Bishop of Rochester in 1793 and Bishop of St. Asaph in 1802, the year this print was published.

Dighton re-published the print in 1809; the alteration of the digit '2' to a '9' can be clearly seen on the right-hand impression. In addition, the title has appropriately been changed to something more commemorative - Horsley having died in 1806 - and Dighton has also inserted '4 Spring Gardens', the address from which he was now working.

The right-hand impression has a watermark date of 1817, which illustrates the fact that these prints were also re-issued many years after their initial publication. The colouring of the print is poor and the deterioration of the copper plate is also clearly visible.

Copper plates were expensive and re-working was not uncommon. Normally copperplates were stamped on the reverse with the trade stamp of the maker. Interestingly, several Dighton etchings appear with the reversed imprints of trade stamps within the actual image, suggesting that, on occasion, Dighton used both sides of the plate. In the example shown below he has attempted to disguise the imprint within the shadow beneath the subject - it reads 'Whittow/No 31 Shoe Lane/London'.

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All images and text are subject to copyright protection. 22 November 2008