"The Most Important... and the Most Accurate of the Pre-Fire Panoramas of London." - Howgego
This is a fine example of the most famous of all bird's-eye views of London, produced by the Bohemian master-engraver Wenceslaus Hollar.
This view is a superlative piece for one of the world's longstanding centers of trade and finance. The view captures the city as it stood during the Caroline period, following sketches that Hollar made from 1636 to 1642, and was first printed in about 1647, in Antwerp. The view has been called the most accurate image of London before the fire (Howgego) because of the keen eye of its engraver and the depth of detail it shows.
This piece shows Hollar's mastery of the medium of copperplate engraving. Hollar's rare eye for capturing sights as they are and not as they should be led to his timeless images that only the finest old masters of northern Europe could produce. Fortunately for those cartographically-inclined, Hollar was also trained as a mapmaker, and his most remarkable pieces come from the combination of these two capabilities and led to the creation of some of the finest maps, city views, and topographical works ever produced.
The Long View stands at the apex of Hollar's oeuvre. On it, we see countless monuments of 17th-century London as captured from St. Mary's Tower (now part of Southwark Cathedral). At the west end of the present example, we see Salsbury House and Convent Garden on the northern bank. On the south bank from these, the Globe and Bear Baiting theaters (erroneously swapped) are shown, with this being one of the most often reproduced images of the Globe prior to its 1644 demolition. Moving eastwards, St. Paul's appears and the layout of the area destroyed in the Fire retains its Elizabethan layout. At the eastern end of the map, London Bridge is beautifully engraved, and past this we see the Tower, at the outskirts of the city. The Thames is filled with countless ships, including the eel ships from which Dutch merchants sold eels to Londoners. Decorative elements line the sky, and the title cartouche, reading simply "London" is adorned with two lions and a coat of arms.
This is, without a doubt, one of the greatest engraved views of London ever produced.
Publication History
The Hollar Long View was engraved on six plates (with the sixth plate split amongst two end sheets, not present in this copy) following sketches made during the period 1636 to 1642. The engraving is known to have been made in Antwerp, where Hollar returned to in 1645. Pennington suggests that the first state was engraved in 1647.
Five of the sheets are known in a second state. These update the city through the 17th century, showing the Maypole (1661), the Monument (1677) and St. Pauls's Dome (1697). However, St. Paul's Dome is incorrectly depicted, suggesting that this final update was made between the completion of the Monument and the completion of St. Paul's Dome (i.e., 1677-1697).
Wenceslaus Hollar
Two features combine to make Hollar's work stand out among the great engravers of the 17th century: his sharp eye that captured a realistic view of objects, people, and places, and his wide travels, during which he made copious sketches that he later turned into engravings. Of the most important of his travels were those that he made to England, where he spent many years in the service of Lord Arundel, a great patron of the arts.
This period in England allowed Hollar the opportunity to travel extensively through the country and to produce a number of Anglo-centric engravings that are today among the most desirable of his output. This period was also a tumultuous one, with the English Civil War starting at the end of his tenure in the country. Having experienced the ruin of his own family following the Sack of Prague, the fate of his adopted country and his English patrons during the interregnum marked Hollar profoundly. Following the onset of conflict, Hollar returned to the Low Countries but continued to work on his English material. It was during this period, in Antwerp, that the Long View was produced.
Hollar continued to travel through his life and would return to England during the restoration. Yet, he never managed to again capture the success of his pre-Restoration period and would die in extreme poverty in 1677.
States
Plates 1, 2, and 3 (from left) are in Pennington's second state (of two, recognizable by the addition of the May Pole, the completion of St. Paul's cathedral, and the addition of the Monument, respectively). Plates 4 and 5 are in the first state (of one).
Rarity
The view is known in eight copies. These are: the British Museum (two copies; one first state; one mixed first and second state, lacking the endsheets); the Royal Library, Windsor (two copies; one first state; one mixed state, lacking the endsheets) the Ashmolean (two copies; one first state; one mixed first and second state); University of Chicago (states undetermined); and a private collection.
The view has appeared twice on the market since 1999, once at Christie's, The London Sale, Lot 1, and then (perhaps the same example) in the London trade in 2016 for £275,000.
A Note on the Endsheets
This example, like one at the British Museum and another at the Royal Library, Windsor, lacks the two endsheets that bear much of the dedicatory and imprint information for the view. These three examples are mixed first and second states, indicating that they were printed later, probably after 1677. It has been hypothesized that the endsheets were often discarded because of their positive discussion of Charles II - an unfavorable sentiment for some, following the English Civil War. It is also possible that the plate was lost or discarded later, when Hollar's plates were acquired by another publisher. It should be noted that the endsheets were printed together, from a single copperplate, to be cut and joined by the printer.
Wenceslaus Hollar, born on July 23, 1607, in Prague, was a prolific and accomplished Bohemian graphic artist of the 17th century.
Known to German speakers as Wenzel Hollar and to Czech speakers as Václav Hollar, he is celebrated for his masterful engravings and etchings. The turmoil of the Thirty Years' War, particularly the Sack of Prague, devastated Hollar's family, leading him to abandon his initial path towards a legal career and instead pursue the arts. His earliest surviving works date back to 1625 and 1626, showcasing the influence of Albrecht Dürer. In 1627, Hollar apprenticed under the esteemed engraver Matthäus Merian in Frankfurt, marking the beginning of his illustrious career.
During the early 1630s, Hollar resided in Strasbourg, Mainz, and Koblenz, capturing the essence of the Middle Rhine Valley through his depictions of towns, castles, and landscapes. In 1633, he moved to Cologne, where his talent began to attract significant attention. It was here, in 1636, that he caught the eye of Thomas Howard, the 21st Earl of Arundel, a renowned nobleman and art collector. Hollar joined Arundel on diplomatic missions to Vienna and Prague, and in 1637, he accompanied the Earl to England.
Upon settling in England, Hollar became part of Arundel's household, though he did not work exclusively for the Earl. He continued to create independently and for various authors and publishers. Following Arundel's death in 1646, Hollar commemorated him with a print designed by Cornelius Schut. Hollar's remarkable "View of Greenwich," published by Peter Stent, exemplified his early work in England and set a precedent for his meticulous and expansive cityscapes.
The English Civil War significantly impacted Hollar's career, although he remained productive. He withstood the siege of Basing House alongside royalist artists like Inigo Jones and William Faithorne. Despite the adversity, Hollar's output was prolific during this period, with numerous plates dated 1643 and 1644. Following his capture and subsequent escape during the siege of Basing House in 1645, Hollar relocated to Antwerp, where he reconnected with Arundel and produced some of his most acclaimed works, including cityscapes, seascapes, and intricate studies of nature.
In 1652, Hollar returned to London, continuing his work with notable publishers and illustrating various significant texts, including Ogilby's Virgil and Homer, Stapylton's Juvenal, and Dugdale's Warwickshire, St Paul's, and Monasticon.
Following the Great Fire of London in 1666, Hollar produced his famous "Views of London," capturing the city's devastation and subsequent rebuilding. In 1668, King Charles II commissioned him to document Tangier's town and forts. His return voyage included a notable naval engagement, which Hollar later etched for Ogilby's Africa. Hollar continued to produce well-regarded works until his death on March 25, 1677, in London, where he was buried at St Margaret's Church, Westminster.
Hollar's legacy endures through an extensive body of work, including some 400 drawings and 3000 etchings. His plates, numbering around 2740, encompass a vast array of subjects, from topographical views and portraits to intricate depictions of nature and architecture.
Collections of Hollar's work are held in prestigious institutions such as the British Museum, Windsor Castle, the National Gallery in Prague, and the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts. His contributions to graphic art are celebrated in catalogues by George Vertue, Gustav Parthey, and Richard Pennington, with a comprehensive catalogue published in the New Hollstein German series. Hollar's work remains accessible through digital collections, notably at the University of Toronto and the Folger Shakespeare Library.
The Wenceslaus Hollar Secondary School of Art in Prague honors his name, ensuring that his artistic legacy continues to inspire future generations.