From the Battery N.Y. | In Prospect Park

PhotographersErnest Edwards, William J. Mozart

CountryUnited States, England

MediumPhotogravure: Text, Photogravure: Engraving

VolumeBits of Nature: Ten Studies in Photo-Gravure

AtelierGast Lithograph and Engraving Company (N.Y & St. Louis)

Year1888

View Additional Information & Tags

Animals, Poultry, Boats, Engraving, Harbors, Marine, Remarque, sailboats

Dimensions

Image Dimensions: 13.4 x 16.8 cm | top: Ernest Edwards: 8.2 x 11.5 cm | bottom: William J. Mozart: 3.5 x 14.3 cm includes borders (Japan tissue)
Support Dimensions: 25.3 x 30.5 cm | thin, manilla leaf


For some reason, this composite plate featuring two separate photographs was originally given the credit of the Photogravure Co. N.Y. when first published as a plate-paper photogravure in the January 27, 1888 issue of The Photographic Times and American Photographer. The top photograph taken by Ernest Edwards shows a sailboat in New York Harbor with the famous Statue of Liberty located just to the right of the boat on the horizon. The bottom photograph, by William J. Mozart, shows ducks in a body of water in Brooklyn’s Prospect Park. Background published in the journal gives additional insight into Edwards working methods and a follow-up reveals the Prospect Park image was taken by Mozart:

The pictorial frontispiece which embellishes this number of the journal is from negatives by Mr. Ernest Edwards, reproduced by his own excellent “gelatine” printing process. Writes Mr. Edwards: “The upper picture, ‘From the Battery,’ was made on Eastman’s American Film, stripped and transferred to gelatine. The lower picture is on a Carbutt Special Plate, and is a snap shot with a Morrison 10-inch Wide-Angle Lens. Both were made at the same time and under the same circumstances, with one ‘photo-gravure’ plate, and thus afford an interesting comparison of the respective merits and qualities of paper and glass. The paper has not the softness of the glass, but halation would have killed the result if glass had been used for the paper picture.” 1.

And this follow up correction to the journal by Edwards himself:

Our Illustration, “From The Battery, And In Prospect Park.”—Mr. Ernest Edwards, referring to our note of explanation regarding the frontispiece illustration of the Jan. 27th issue, writes in a recent letter to us:
“By the way, why call the picture in the last number ‘by gelatine process’? Gelatine never dared to do such work. By the way also, the lower negative was by W. J. Mozart.” 2.

1. Editorial Notes: from: The Photographic Times and American Photographer: January 27, 1888: New York: p. 38
2. Notes and News: from: The Photographic Times and American Photographer: February 10, 1888: New York: p. 70

From the Battery N.Y. | In Prospect Park