Lithographic Images of the Japan Expedition.:
    ~ Eliphalet Brown's Illustrations of the Japan Expedition
    ~ Wilhelm Heine's Graphic Scenes of the Japan Expedition
         General Information
         Price List (Added May 2009)
    ~ Heine, Brown, et. al., lithographs in the Government Narrative          Lew Chew (Okinawa)   -  20 Lithographs, 2 Maps
         Japan - Part 1   -  28 + 1 (banned) Lithographs
         Japan - Part 2   -  19 Lithographs - 1 Map
         Other   -  22 Lithographs - Not Japan or Okinawa
         Natural History, Part 1 - Birds, Animals & Agriculture
         Natural History, Part 2 - Fish & Shells
         Reports/Documents Extracted from Volume 2

 

Graphic Scenes of the Japan Expedition
Lithographs by William Heine - 1856

 
Heine, William:
Graphic Scenes of the Japan Expedition by Wm Heine, Artist of the Expedition, New York, G. P. Putnam & Company, 1856, ten lithographs by Sarony & Company, folio (20 1/4~1/2 x 15 in).

 
William (Wilhelm) Heine was the official artist of Commodore Matthew C. Perry's expedition to Japan in 1853-54. On returning to the United States, he produced a series of 10 prints commemorating the trip. This project employed the New York lithographic firm of Sarony, at that time probably the most skilled craftsmen in their profession in the United States.

The plates were issued in a loose (folio) format and in a book format.

The covers are brown blind stamped cloth with gilt lettering on the front cover. To see the front cover, click here.

The book has an ornate/decorative illustrated title page followed by an unillustrated title page. You often see this folio referred to as "Graphic Scenes of..." and "Graphic Scenes in...". This occurs because the illustrated title page reads "in" while the second title pages uses "of". Regarding the ten plates and the illustrated title plate, the unillustrated title plate states "Ten Plates and an Illustrated Title-Page, Printed in Colors and Tints by Sarony & Co." Following the title pages is a one page introduction by F. L. Hawks. The ten plates then follow, each accompanied by a one page discussion of the image..

These 10 lithographs were marketed in the book (in 1856 sold for $6.00) and in a deluxe folio format (in 1856 sold for $12.00). The deluxe folio lithographs are on bristol board while the book lithographs are on thick card stock type paper. These prices are shown on the illustrated lithographed title page.

A contemporary catalogue described the publication this way:

Heine.--Graphic Scenes in the Japan Expedition, by William Heine, Artist of the Expedition. Printed in Colours and Tints by Sarony and Co.; comprising 10 folio Plates and an Illustrated Title Page, with descriptive letterpress. New York, 1856. Plain Edition, printed in Colours, £2 2s. Fine edition, printed on Bristol boards, £4 4s. (Page 332, Trübner's Bibliographical Guide to American Literature, A Classed List of Books Published in the Unites State of American During the Last Forty Years. With Biographical Introduction, Notes, and Alphabetical Index by Nicolas Trübner, Benjamin Moran, Edward Edwards, London, 1859).

  Characteristics of the Regular (Book) and Deluxe (Fine) Editions.

  • Book Format. (in the bound book).
    • Illustrated lithographed title page.
    • A tinted lithograph portrait of Commodore M.C. Perry standing (on India paper after a daguerreotype by P. Haas mounted with a facsimile signature on the mount).
    • Seven more tinted lithographs in the book are printed on India paper and tipped to plate (thick paper stock).
    • The two chromolithograph plates (No. 3. - Pagoda of Whampoa and No. 4. - Old China Street in Canton) are printed directly on the thick paper stock.
    • 12 letterpress pages. These are the title page (not illustrated), Introduction and descriptive text pages for each of the 10 plates (one being Commodore Perry's biography).
    • Plate/page size is approximately 20 1/4 x 15 in (51.4 x 38.2 cm).
    • Back and front of the plate have a mat/flat finish.

  • Deluxe Folio Format (termed "Extra Fine on Bristol Boards" on the illustrated title page). The following characteristics of the deluxe folio and prints are noted.
    • Illustrated lithographed title page.
    • A tinted lithograph portrait of Commodore M.C. Perry standing (on India paper after a daguerreotype by P. Haas mounted with a facsimile signature on the mount).
    • Nine lithographs with hand coloring. The same basic tinted(7)/chromolithograph(2) plates were used but they have been enhanced with color finishing by hand.
    • Richer colors. The color blue, often added to clothing, is a strong indication that the plate is handcolored.
    • Lithographs are on thicker board (Bristol board) than the regular (book) format ones. The Bristol Board is more than 2 times thicker than the regular plates. The thicker board often results in the print curling up at the top and bottom along the long axis.
    • 12 pages of letterpress as in the book format.
    • No evidence of removal (in left side) from a bound volume.
    • Plate/page size is approximately 20 1/4 x 15 inches (51.4 x 38.8 cm).
    • Back of the plate has a glossy finish, front has a flat finish.

    To see a side by side comparison of a tinted plate and a hand colored tinted plate, click on Plate 6, Plate 7 or Plate 9.

 
Format. A complete book or folio is a scarce item and very little is information is available in the public domain describing what the as issued book or folio format looked like. I have personally examined two complete books. I have never examined a complete folio and the information on that is based upon a description by a major bookseller.

1. Book Format. I have personally examined two copies. One copy was in original binding (leather bound) and it had an illustrated title page and a non-illustrated letterpress title page. The second copy was apparently rebound and it did not have the illustrated title page. It did have the letterpress title page, the Introduction, the Perry bibliography and accompanying text pages for the 9 other plates (a total of 12 letterpress pages). All the lithographs and letterpress pages were bound into the book. The plates are not on Bristol board but on thick cardboard type paper. Eight plates are tinted and 2 have color added.

2. Folio Format. I have not examined a complete deluxe edition folio. It has been described by a major bookseller in the terms that follow. The book (folio) has thin cream card wraps. The front wrap being the lithographed illustrated title page. The back wrap was not described and presumed to be blank. The two wraps were bound by a blue/green cloth over the spine and approximately 1/2 inch onto the wraps. The 10 plates and 12 pages of letterpress (as noted above) were loose within the bound wraps. These were contained in a brown cloth portfolio with the title "Graphic Scenes - in the - Japan Expedition - Wm. Heine" in gilt at the upper right corner. The plates were described as "one tinted portrait of Perry from a daguerreotype by P. Haas, nine views by Heine printed in colours and finished by hand." It is not clear whether this was a as issued folio or a made later housing for the loose plates and text.

 

Title Page and Plates 1~10
Graphic Scenes
of the Japan Expedition
(Regular Edition - Bound Book)


    Illustrated Cover/Title Page (Lithograph Printed in Brown)

    Introduction (Text Only)

    [Image on the Left is from a Regular Edition. Image on the Right (when picture is available)
    is from a Deluxe Edition (Bristol Board, Hand Coloring/Finishing Added)]

    The 10 plates pictured below are from the regular
    book format edition, not the deluxe folio edition.

    Plate #1 - Portrait of Commodore Perry

    Plate #2 - Macao from Penha Hill

    Plate #3 - The Pagoda of Wampoa - Colored
    Regular Regular Edition    Deluxe Deluxe Edition

    Plate #4 - Old China Street in Canton - Colored
    RegularRegular Edition     DeluxeDeluxe Edition

    Plate #5 - Kung-Kwa at On-Na, Lew-Chew
    RegularRegular Edition     Deluxe Deluxe Edition

    Plate #6 - Mia, the Roadside Chapel at Yokuhama
    RegularRegular Edition     Deluxe Edition

    Plate #7 - Temple of Ben-teng in the Harbor at Simoda
    Regular Edition     Deluxe Deluxe Edition

    Plate #8 - Street and Bridge at Simoda
    Regular Regular Edition

    Plate #9 - Temple of Ha-Tshu-Man-ya Tshu-ro at Simoda
    RegularRegular Edition     Deluxe Deluxe Edition

    Plate #10 - Grave Yard at Simoda Dio Zenge
    RegularRegular Edition     Deluxe Deluxe Edition
    To see a close-up side by side comparison of a Deluxe (color added) lithograph and a Standard (tinted but no color added) lithograph, click here.

    These lithographs have been described as being many times finer than those in the regular account of the Perry expedition and are considered by some a rarity. The images on these prints are approximately 40% larger than those that are published in the Narrative of the Expedition.


     
    Here is an example of Plate #3 (Whampoa Pagoda). This print did appear in the Narrative of the Expedition.

     

    The Finer "Graphic Scenes" Print
    Same Print from Narrative

     
    The book or the complete print folio are very scarce and very seldom appear on the market.

     


     
     
    One year earlier (1855), Eliphalet M. Brown, Jr., published a series of six (6) large size large ("Elephant" folio) high quality hand colored lithographs based upon his and Wilhelm Heine's art. Brown was a photographer (daguerreian) on the Expedition. These lithographs by Sarony and Company measure 36 1/2 x 26 in - 92.5 x 65.5 cm. These should not be confused with the Graphic Scenes prints. The "Elephant" folio lithographs are rare (museum quality). For more information on the E. Brown folio of lithographs, click here.

    This is the "Elephant" folio lithograph titled "Passing the Rubicon."

     
    The six lithographs in the E. Brown folio are:

    1. Passing the Rubicon, Lieut. S. Bent in Mississippi's First Cutter forcing his way through a Fleet of Japanese boats while surveying the Bay of Yedo, Japan, July 11th 1853.
    2. First Landing of Americans in Japan, under Commodore M. C. Perry at Gore-Hama July 14th 1853.
    3. Landing of Commodore Perry, officers and men of the Squadron, to meet the Imperial Commissioners at Yoku-Hama, Japan, March 8th 1854.
    4. Exercise of the Troops in Temple Grounds, Simoda, Japan in presence of the Imperial Commissioners, June 8th 1854.
    5. Landing of Commodore Perry, Officers and men of the Squadron to meet the Imperial Commissioners at Shimoda, Japan, June 8th 1854.
    6. Return of Commodore Perry, Officers and men of the Squadron from an Official Visit to the Prince Regent at Shuri, June 6th 1853.

     


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