Name: JAMES NASMYTH (1808-1890) & JAMES CARPENTER (ACTIVE 1880s)
Brand: The Moon: Considered as a Planet, a World, and a Satellite, 1874
Price: 3000.00 USD
Availability: SoldOut

JAMES NASMYTH (1808-1890) & JAMES CARPENTER (ACTIVE 1880s)
The Moon: Considered as a Planet, a World, and a Satellite, 1874
London: John Murray, Albemarle Street, 1874. Portfolio of twenty-two Woodburytypes and one heliotype print, each mounted on paper; each with printed photographer's credit, title, plate number and medium in ink (mount, recto); image sizes ranging from 4¹⁄₂ x 3¹⁄₈ in. (11.4 x 7.9 cm.) to 6³⁄₄ x 8⁷⁄₈ in. (17.1 x 22.5 cm.) or the reverse, each mount 11 x 8 in. (27.9 x 20.3 cm.); contained in blue clamshell portfolio case 18³⁄₈ x 15¹⁄₄ x 4³⁄₈ in. (46.7 x 38.7 x 11.1 cm.)

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Lot Essay

The plates are as follows:
I. Crater of Vesuvius, 1864
II. Back of Hand & Wrinkled Apple
III. Full Moon
IV. Picture Map of the Moon
VI. Portion of the Moons Surface & Vesuvius and Neighbourhood of Naples
VIII. Copernicus
IX. The Lunar Apennines, Archemedes
X. Aristotle & Eudoxus
XI. Triesnecker
XII. Theophilus Cyrillus & Catharina
XIII. Ptolemy Alphons Arzachael
XIV. Plato
XV. Mercator & Campanus
XVI. Tycho and its Surroundings
XVII. Wargentin
XVIII. Aristarchus & Herodotus
XIX. Full Moon & Glass Globe
XX. Overlapping Craters
XXI. Normal Lunar Crater
XXIII. Group of Lunar Mountains. Ideal Lunar Landscape.

James Nasmyth, an engineer, and amateur astronomer created detailed representations of the moon by combining direct observation with plaster models and photographic techniques. Working with James Carpenter, a professional astronomer at the Royal Observatory known for his research on stellar spectra and Saturn’s rings, the two produced striking lunar images that promoted the inaccurate idea that the moon’s cratered landscape was formed by volcanic eruptions. These images were reproduced using the processes of Woodburytype and Heliotype, which allowed for sharp, detailed prints that further enhanced the scientific appearance of their work. Despite the speculative nature of their theory, their work was widely accepted at the time, largely because photography, still a relatively new medium, lent the images an air of scientific credibility that made their conclusions seem more authoritative than they truly were.