36 hand-coloured military lithographs: the Donaueschingen copy

Pettenkoffer, August von / Strassgschwandtner, Josef Anton. Die k. k. Österreich‘sche Armée nach der neuesten Adjustirung.

€ 4,000.00

From the foremost military artists of their era: a series of brightly hand-coloured lithographs by two renowned students of the Viennese Akademie der bildenden Künste, dedicated to Emperor Franz Joseph and comprising a complete set of 36 plates showcasing Austro-Hungarian military uniforms from all different sections of the newly reformed armies. This was previously the Donaueschingen copy, with the library's stamp on the title.

Karl August von Pettenkofen (originally Pettenkoffer) became a student at the Viennese Academy in 1834, but a decade later joined the military and served in the Dragoon Regiment of Louis I of Bavaria. During this time the artist found inspiration in the uniforms of the Austrian army, and dedicated the following two decades to producing watercolours and lithographs of military garb. His fellow student was Anton Strassgschwandtner (attended the Academy from 1843-45), who in a similar fashion to his collaborator chose for his main artistic focus the depiction of military and hunting scenes. Together, the two men captured Austro-Hungarian uniforms and armaments in sharp detail and with an eye for accuracy, as well as great artistic skill - Only six copies of any edition are held in institutions listed on OCLC, and of these only one is a Leykum edition.