View in the Levant, Ottoman Harbour and Fortress, 1820, Engraving on Paper

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This antique engraving titled "View in the Levant" shows a harbour quay beneath a massive fortress wall, with turbaned figures, … Read more This antique engraving titled "View in the Levant" shows a harbour quay beneath a massive fortress wall, with turbaned figures, a large urn and a three masted ship at anchor, an early nineteenth century London line engraving of an Eastern Mediterranean port under Ottoman rule. The plate carries no publisher's imprint or date. In British usage the Levant meant the lands of the eastern Mediterranean, from the Aegean coast of Anatolia to Syria, Lebanon and Palestine, all then part of the Ottoman Empire. The plate does not name a particular town, and it has not been identified here. Merchants trading through the Levant Company and travellers bound for Constantinople, Smyrna and Aleppo made the region's harbours familiar to British readers, and the engraver captures that world in the robed and turbaned figures on the quay and the merchant ship lying offshore. The plate bears no imprint. It is an early nineteenth century London engraving, circa 1815 to 1830, in the style of the Kelly plates in this group, and is probably from a popular illustrated geography or book of travels issued in parts. No specific source is claimed. The print is uncoloured and engraved in line, with fine work in the masonry of the fortress and the rigging of the ship. This view in the Levant will appeal to collectors of Ottoman and Near Eastern subjects, maritime scenes and early orientalist prints. It would look well framed in dark wood or black with a cream mount, and could be grouped with the views of the Dardanelles and the Seraglio at Constantinople from the same folio. The sheet is in good condition for its age, with light toning and a few fine specks in the margins; the image is clean and crisp. This is an original antique print, not a modern reproduction. This item is sold unframed. Any framed or interior images are shown for presentation and inspiration only, unless the listing explicitly states that the item is sold framed. See less