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Description:
This large original antique print of the London Charter House situated in Smithfield London - accompanied with text page - was published by Francis Grose on the 1773 edition of The Antiquities of England and Wales.
The London Charterhouse is a historic complex of buildings in Smithfield, London dating back to the 14th century. It occupies land to the north of Charterhouse Square. The Charterhouse began as (and takes its name from) a Carthusian priory, founded in 1371 and dissolved in 1537. Substantial fragments remain from this monastic period, but the site was largely rebuilt after 1545 as a large courtyard house. Thus, today it "conveys a vivid impression of the type of large rambling 16th century mansion that once existed all round London". The Charterhouse was further altered and extended after 1611, when it became an almshouseand school, endowed by Thomas Sutton. The almshouse (a home for gentlemen pensioners) still occupies the site today under the name the Charterhouse.
Francis Grose (1731 –1791) was an English antiquary, draughtsman, and lexicographer. He was born at his father's house in Broad Street, St-Peter-le-Poer, London. Grose had early on shown a keen interest in drawing, having attempted sketches of medieval buildings as far back as 1749, and having taken formal instruction at a drawing school in the mid-1750s. He was not a particularly gifted draughtsman but he mixed in the London artistic milieu and began to exhibit, first at the Society of Artists in 1767–8 and then at the Royal Academy. His interest was in the field of medieval remains, which were beginning to exercise an increasing grip on the public imagination. In 1772, he published the first part of The Antiquities of England and Wales, a work which he unashamedly aimed at the popular market. Essentially, it targeted those who wanted to know about antiquities but had neither time nor means to visit them in person, and contained small panoramas of medieval ruins, together with an informative text on a separate page. Sometimes the text was taken from books already published, or from information supplied by other antiquaries (both acknowledged); sometimes Grose collated material himself from which he could work up an article. From 1772 onwards, he also toured the country to visit and draw sites for inclusion in The Antiquities. The fourth and last volume came out in June 1776, and Grose almost immediately began work on a supplement.
General Description: Paper thickness and quality: - Heavy & stable Paper color: - Off white Age of map color: - Colors used: - General color appearance: - Paper size: - 15in x 9 1/2in (385mm x 235mm) Margins: - Min 1/2in (12mm)
Imperfections: Margins: - None Plate area: - None Verso: - None