1780 Old Master Aquatint Etching \"Venus au Bain\" by Maria Katharina Prestel RARE For Sale

Rare 18th-Century Old Master Facsimile Etching & Aquatint – "Venus au Bain" by Maria Katharina Prestel after Annibale Carracci (c. 1780)

Item OverviewTitle: Venus au Bain (Venus at the Bath)

Printmaker: Maria Katharina Prestel (German, 1747–1794)

Original Artist: Annibale Carracci (Italian, 1560–1609)

Date of Creation: Circa 1780

Medium: Original 18th-century etching and aquatint on handmade laid paper.

Sheet Size: Large Royal Folio format, 18” x 23 ½” (approx. 45.7 cm x 59.7 cm)

Series / Plate Marking: Inscribed "No. 16" in the lower-right margin.

Detailed DescriptionUp for sale is an exceptional and highly collectible genuine late-18th-century reproductive print executed by the renowned master printmaker Maria Katharina Prestel. This piece serves as a monumental facsimile replicating an original ink-and-wash drawing by Italian Baroque titan Annibale Carracci.Prestel was celebrated globally for her technical mastery of combining etching lines with tone-rich aquatint gradients, perfectly mimicking the fluid wash, texture, and immediate hand of Old Master sketches. Other impressions of this specific, rare plate are highly prized and reside in major world institutions, including the Block Museum of Art at Northwestern University and the Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum in Germany.

The lower margin features elegant contemporary French typography reading:"Venus au Bain : Dessin d'Annibal Carracci / Gravé après l'Original de même grandeur"(Venus at the Bath: Drawing by Annibale Carracci / Engraved after the Original at the exact same size).Inscriptions & Authenticity Identifiers.

Lower Left Margin: Inscribed with title and artistic attribution (Venus au Bain...).

Lower Right Margin: Marked with folio series identifier No. 16.

Paper Characteristic: Features a distinctive period watermark visible when back-lit, alongside prominent chain lines characteristic of 18th-century manual European papermaking.

Margins: Extremely generous, uncropped full margins showing it was preserved inside a collector's folio album.

Condition ReportOverall State: Excellent antique condition given its ~240+ year age.

Paper Quality: The handmade sheet retains excellent structural integrity, exhibiting mild, stable age-toning and very light peripheral handling wear consistent with institutional folio preservation.

Impression: A crisp, tonally rich impression capturing all fine lines and granular aquatint depth.(Note: Please review the high-resolution listing photos closely to evaluate exact corner conditions).