Facsimiles of Photogenic Drawing, Eirth Church, Kent G.F.

On April 27, 1839 The Magazine of Science and School of Arts featured three "Fac-similes of Photogenic Drawings" on its cover: two botanical specimens – Fool’s Parsley and Grass of Parnassus – and a piece of lace. Although wood engravings created by skill of hand, they approach photography more closely for the very wooden block used for the printing plate was itself sensitized and impressed at once on box-wood, and were therefore fit for the graver, without any other preparation. [1]

The following week The Magazine of Science published two more of Francis’s photogenic drawings, seen here, which were representations of a negative and the print from it. The camera negative could not have been taken directly on the boxwood (amongst other restrictions), it would have been impossible to print from) so in this issue the engraver must have worked from paper photographs given by Francis. [2]

Reproduced / Exhibited

Schaff, ‘Relevations and Representations’ https://talbot.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/2016/05/27/revelations-representations/

References

[1] Eastman House – Image volume 11/2, 1962

[2] Schaff, ‘Relevations and Representations’ https://talbot.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/2016/05/27/revelations-representations/