Since
closing our Milton gallery at Camford Square, Derek and I have been surprisingly
busy - maps, prints and books bought online, meeting customers at our shops in
the Brisbane Antique Centre at exit 30 (Beenleigh-Redland Bay Road), and sharing
refreshments with visitors to the Antique Print Club-house on Mt Nimmel in Neranwood.
We now also have regular exhibitions in Clayfield at Brisbane Antique Emporium (Open Daily at 794 Sandgate Road – free
parking, off Junction Road). The current exhibition shows 400 years of Antique Maps & Prints of Australia.
As recently as the
17th century Terra Australis
Incognita (unknown southern land) represented European opinion that a large
landmass at the South Pole balanced the populated countries of the northern
hemisphere. Including “curious” in their titles, even early 18th
century maps wrong coastlines for Australia - until James Cook discovered and charted
the east coast in 1770.
Early European engravings showed decidedly strange interpretations of
Australia’s unfamiliar marsupials. Engravings of our birds and animals
include the ‘kanguroo’
on Captain Cook’s voyage (more accurate in shape than many images from
the First Fleet settlement). 19th century beautiful large
hand-coloured lithographs of Australian birds and mammals were published by
John Gould. 18th century hand-coloured engravings of distinctive Australian
flora had finely engraved dissections of flowers. Some in the 19th
century used uncoloured sections to emphasize foliage detail. Exquisite
hand-coloured botanical lithographs c1840 are beautiful decorative artwork.
Let us know if we can be of assistance.. and Gift Certificates for any value are always available http://www.antiqueprintclub.com/p-1947-gift-certificate-for-antique-maps-prints-or-books.aspx..
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