A View of the Fall of Niagara
Gentleman’s Magazine 1751
A View of the Fall of Niagara, Gentleman’s Magazine 1751
“After Peter Kalm. “A View of the Fall of Niagara.” From Gentleman’s Magazine. London, February 1751. 4 x 7 1/4. Engraving. Corners a bit ragged. Otherwise, excellent condition. Impressions of Niagara: 6.
One of the earliest available views of Niagara Falls, this print is derived from Father Hennepin’s original image with modifications based upon an account by Peter Kalm, a Swedish botanist who visited Niagara Falls in 1750. A letter from Kalm to a friend in Philadelphia was printed in the Pennsylvania Gazette, September 20, 1750. The letter was reprinted in Gentleman’s Magazine, January 1751, as “A letter from Mr. Kalm, a gentleman of Sweden, now on his travels in America, to his friend in Philadelphia, containing a particular account of the Great Fall of Niagara, September 2, 1750.” This engraving appeared in the same magazine one month later with an image that was based on Hennepin by way of the view of Niagara that appeared on Henry Popple’s map of North America issued in 1733. The Popple image was modified party for artistic reasons-for instance the three large pine trees on the brink of Goat Island-and though it is unlikely Kalm had anything to do with the making of this engraving, the view was further modified by a number of new features that derive from the text of Kalm’s letter-including a flock of birds going over the brink of the falls, an Indian ladder down the embankment, two men crossing the river to Goat Island, and the elimination of Hennepin’s third cascade. An early and influential image in the iconography of Niagara Falls. $280″
“A wonderful mid-18th century engraving of Niagara Falls. According to Lane in “Impressions of Niagara,” this view is a modification of Hennepin’s early view of the Falls with additions based upon a letter by Peter Kalm, a Swedish botanist, appearing in the Pennsylvania Gazette in 1750. The additions, which are keyed below the view, are of men crossing over the east stream with staves and “The Indians reascending their ladder.” Kalm’s letter was reprinted in the January, 1750 issue of The Gentleman’s Magazine; that issue of the Magazine, containing Kalm’s five-page description of the Falls, accompanies the view. Lane, Impressions of Niagara: 6. Limited light foxing. A very displayable example. 4 5/8 x 7 3/8.”.”
antiqueprints 