Fairy Lake, New South Wales after Skinner Prout. c1874

by Booth, Edwin Carton

Lovely early evening view. Antique print of Fairy Lake in the Illawarra region near Sydney.

Original steel engraving by Arthur Willmore (1814-1888), after a sketch by prominent English topographical artist and engraver John Skinner Prout (1806-1876) for Edwin Carton Booth’s  Australia Illustrated.. Colonial Australia was illustrated by engravings after the drawings by eminent topographical artists Skinner Prout, Nicholas Chevalier, J.C. Armytage and others. The fine engraving was published in England circa 1874 by Virtue & Company.

Skinner Prout was one of the principal artists for this wonderful publication on Australia in the 19th century. This engraving was made from a mirror image of Skinner Prout's drawing. Skinner Prout was born on 19 December 1805 at Plymouth in England. On 14 December 1840 he arrived in Sydney with his wife, their seven children, and a complete lithographic printing press. From early in 1841 Prout sketched and lithographed the Sydney regions. In January 1844 Prout moved to Hobart and drew Hobart and its environs for a series of lithographs.He helped organize and accompanied sketching trips in New South Wales, Tasmania and Victoria. Prout and his family returned to England in April 1848.

The engraving is in good condition, with wide margins as published. Page size is 215 x 270mm (8 1/2 x 10 5/8 inches). Image size is approximately 130 x 180mm (5 x 7)