John William Casilear: Did He Work On The 1851 Tcc Series?

Question for sojourner:

Do you own or have direct access to the engraved letter/announcement that you mentioned in your first post on this thread and a few other times since then?

Yes, I have a color photocopy of the announcement. It is not the same one that was sold out of the ABN archives in that it doesn't have the notation "Eng' by Charles Toppan". Why that is, I am not sure, but the one I have is the same in all other respects, except for the addressee.

Oddly enough it was precisely that notation I wanted to examine and discuss. Brazer illustrates one of these in his series in the CCP, and attributes the work to W.C. Smillie on the basis of its similarity with another of these done for a Canadian Bank Note Co. I will look at the pic again this Thursday, but the whole page in CCP is quarto size and I don't think it will have much detail.

Do you have an illustration of the one from the ABN archives, or a ref to the catalog and lot that describes it? I am curious about how the attribution to Toppan was done. He is a good candidate inasmuch as he was a letter engraver, but the question remains, what and who was the authority who determined that for the archives?

Essayk, if you can see this webpage, and move your pointer over the engraving, it will increase the size. However, it may not be big enough for you to really do much.


http://auction.archivesinternationa...on_i12936705

I am going to try and download another bank note bill that directly ties Casilear to a TC & Co. bank note printed before 1851. It also has an engraving of Andrew Jackson that I want the board to look at for comparison of style with the Washington Franklin bust portraits.

Image of New Orleans, LA- Canal Bank $50 18__. Portraits of Andrew | Lot #21148 | Heritage Auctions

I am sure you can figure out how to get this image up for the forum, if I haven't been successful.

The keys to this note are the following:

Casilear designed the main vignette in 1841 while in Europe ("moneta" surrounded by '50'). The documentation attributing this to him is sound. We also can corroborate his contract work for Draper, Toppan & Co. during this period from a second, impeccable source, his close friend, engraving collaborator, and famed Hudson River School painter, John Frederic Kensett.

The engraving of Jackson is based on a painting by James B. Longacre, who was with Draper, Toppan, Longacre & Co. from 1835-1839. He later became Chief Engraver at the US Mint, and is famous for numerous profile bust coin designs. He also could do engraving portraits with great skill. The engraving lines on the Jackson portrait should be examined closely for comparison with those on the Franklin- Washington heads.

For further comparison, I have uploaded an engraving of Jackson done by Casilear in 1834 for publication in the New-York Mirror, as part of a much larger engraving depicting the seven Presidents of the United States, all engraved by Casilear. This piece established his reputation in portrait engraving. Some of the engraved portraits of the Presidents were used on bank note vignettes later.



It would be interesting to hear the forum comments on the engraving style used by Casilear on this piece viz. those of the Jackson on the $50 Canal Note, and the Franklin, Washington profile busts.

Thank you for the link to the Archives International lot. I downloaded the image and expanded it in Photoshop, but it started to fuzz out right away. I looked into getting an enlargement from them, and heard back from Robert Schwartz to the effect that the sale was 6 years old and he didn't have an enlargement anymore. I was glad to see that much.

Clicking on the images below will give a larger view of each.

Fuzzy as it is, here is the TCCCo announcement sheet from the ABN archives. Just below the cursive company name "signature" there is another notation which does not appear to have been engraved, nor originally part of the page.



[I tweaked it a bit and replaced the earlier version. Still not clear.]




Here is the note in question:







Here is a same size composite of the three vignettes we wish to compare. However, I must point out that they may not be at the same scale, since I did not make the original scan of the Jackson. This is close, but if we need it precise then I will obtain one of the notes for a comparative scan at scale. That will also be necessary if we need larger images to compare. BTW I saw one of these notes that is a signed and dated remainder, and it is year dated to 1849. I am sure the engraving is earlier than that, since these are part of a series from circa 1845.




- - - - - - - - - - CLICK ME

My immediate impression of these three vignettes is that they are not of the same hand. While the facial shading of all three has similarities, the engraving of Jacksons hair is very different in style and intensity than that of the other two. The background shading is significantly different, inasmuch as it has a tight pattern of intersecting straight lines, whereas for the other two, the engraver used a pattern of wavy lines that have been broken at odd intervals with short vertical strokes. The treatment of Jackson's coat collar is significantly different as well, but that may be owing to the fact that this was done in 3/4 profile, portrait style, while the others are done as side profile busts. However the depth of the cut lines on Jackson's coat is much deeper than for the garments of the others.

These differences make it hard for me to say that they were all engraved by the same person only a few years apart.



On the other Jackson image you uploaded, there is a distorted perspective. The focus goes out in the upper left when it should not, which is a clue that the focal plane of the camera was not parallel to the object. That said, is this a good likeness of the original?

Here is another, less magnified image of the Casilear engraving of Jackson.



What I did with the Letter of Introduction was to enhance the size as much as I could on the website, then print out at 250% size at the best setting so it filled the majority of the typed page. It is still a little fuzzy, but I could definitely make out the "Eng' by Charles Toppan" below the firm signature. If not engraved, it is written very carefully and was intended to mimic the engraved script. It is a bit lighter, but not much. Not being engraved would explain why it doesn't appear on my colored photocopy, which I obtained from a couple in Florida who are serious bank note collectors and own the engraved copy.

As to the comparison of the Jackson engraving with the profile bust portraits, I agree that it does appear to be by a different hand. BTW, the engraver of the main vignette on the $50 Canal Bank note that Casilear designed was Stephen Alonzo Schoff, who is largely forgotten today, but in his time was quite talented. He has a relative who has posted online on Picasa things that Schoff engraved. Some of these tie to Casilear (the two met when in Europe in the early 1840's). I am going to contact the fellow who posted the images and see what he can tell me about Schoff's time with Toppan, Carpenter & Co. and with Casilear.

Longacre could be the man who inspired the profile portrait busts. I have seen cameo profile engravings of Franklin and Washington on a Draper, Toppan, Longacre & Co. sample engravers sheet of the late 1830's, and whoever did the 1845 series probably took those as models.

Re. linear distortion
The magnification of the image is not the problem, for the vertical lines still tend toward convergence. You need to get the focal plane to parallel the object. Let me suggest the following:

1. Position the camera above the subject pointing straight down at it. If your tripod allows it, remove the center column and insert it upside down into the tripod sleeve so the head is suspended upside down centered between the three legs. Mount the camera to the head in the usual way, but point it down toward the subject.

2. If you have a very small spirit level with a bubble in the center, place it on the subject and adjust the stand/frame holding the subject it until it is level. Then place the level on the back of the camera and level it without altering the position of the frame holding your subject.

You should now have parallelism for the shot.

What is at issue is the convergence and linear distortion of the vertical lines in the background shading as well as all the verticals in the image. The background appears to be wavy, but how wavy is it? Your image needs to be precise to nail that down. Sorry for the rigor, but that is what it takes.


I am afraid that I have become confused by your last two posts. I thought from the first post that Casilear had done the principle vignette of this note, i.e. Moneta within "50" Now I see that he "designed" it but that the engraving was done by Schoff. Meanwhile the Jackson vignette on the bank note was modeled after a painted portrait by Longacre, but was engraved by Casilear.

Do I have that straight now?


I have been asking myself why assume that the dual vignettes were necessarily first engraved after 1845. On the Canal Bank $10 note we have been following, there is a portrait of a person I cannot identify on the left side, who is wearing a hat after the manner of a Renaissance master (Raphael?). That same figure appears on the following note from Draper, Toppan and Co.



Apples and oranges, I understand, but it opens the door for further reflection. Just when did these vignettes (Washington and Franklin) first come into being? Not until 1845 under TCCo, or earlier, as Draper, Toppan, or even earlier under Draper, Toppan, and Longacre? What can we point at?

Essayk,

I will work on getting a better image of the Casilear Jackson engraving. It's pretty obvious from previous posts, that I lack some of the equipment/software, and your technical transfer talents, in the imaging area.

On the vignettes, first, I think I have been consistent in describing Casilear as the designer of the 'Moneta' vignette. Second, I never said he engraved the Jackson head, only that the $50 Canal note ties him directly to a TC & Co. era bank note. I don't know who engraved the Jackson head. Third, the 'Rafael' in the vignette is Columbus - yea, hard to believe, but true. Fourth, you are right to say that we aren't sure when the profile bust engravings of Franklin and Washington were first done on a bank note. My hypothesis is that they first appeared with Toppan, Carpenter & Co., because I can't find an earlier use than the Piscataqua Exchange Bank in June, 1845.

It was common practice for successor engraving firms to keep old plates on hand for later use. The counterfeiters, of course, freely used images from plates they acquired for decades after they first appeared. Casilear was a prime victim of this. BTW, I did find another bank note proof with the two flanking heads - The Poughkeepsie Bank of NY. No good though, since post-1851.

Unless I can find an engravers sample sheet with Draper, Toppan, Longacre & Co. or Draper, Toppan & Co. that has the two profile busts on it, my hypothesis will stay. I have never seen them on the formers sheets that have come to auction, and never have seen one of the latter, at auction or otherwise. No one is really sure of how many private issue bank and other entity notes were done: proofs, remainders, issued, but it is in the tens of thousands . Even the most advanced collections coming to auction in the last 10 years have missed a fair number of notes that have later appeared. Haxby, as good as it is, also missed a fair number. And, Haxby doesn't list advertising notes, scrip, drafts and checks with images on them. So, it is a hunt and discover scenario.

In the interest of bolstering an argument you have been at some pains to demonstrate conclusively, and have done with other material, here is a proof note you might find interesting:




Brazer attests to another $10 note on this bank issued with date May 4, 1834. Note the location of the Bank Note Company.



Brazer observes that this association was made in 1831, the last year of Peter Maverick's life. But this establishes beyond dispute that Toppan was exposed to the work of John Casilear who was still apprenticed to Maverick at the time of this association.

Note too the "signature" of engraver C.G. Childs who engraved the central vignette on this and other such notes.

I see what you are saying. However, the fact that Toppan and Maverick had a brief partnership in 1831 doesn't establish a relationship between Toppan and Casilear. I have found it extraordinarily difficult to figure out exactly what Casilear did with Maverick, since as an apprentice, he would not have signed anything, rather Maverick would have. You see this on all his bank notes (a couple of signed vignettes aside, by more senior shop engravers). Maverick's shop did a lot of different items of copper plate engraving and lithography, not just bank notes, although that was his "bread and butter". You can make the inference, but it is just that. Remember, Toppan was in Philadelphia and Maverick in New York. Look, if just you want to use what I previously described when he was with Durand for the piece you are putting together, I will be OK with it. Hopefully, when it comes to crediting, you will contact me if you end up using it or anything else I put out on this forum that works into your piece.

On the digital of the Casilear Jackson engraving: I have gotten a straight, parallel plane shot that is clear, but has a very slight bow on the sides due to the camera aperture. Cropping distorts the shot, why I'm not sure. It is 5.9 megapixels without cropping, too big to use the image compression on. I only have a point and shoot 8.0 megapixel camera, not a high end SLR. My tripod is one of those spider deals that can contort around anything, but is short. If I go to a closer macro lens shot, the bow and wavy lines get bigger the closer I get. If I pull away and shoot without the tripod so there is no bow, I can't get enough stability and the image is fuzzy. I'll keep fooling around with it, but don't expect a perfect shot. BTW, the image is being taken directly from an 1834 full page engraving in a bound book I own, which has the usual aging, dirt, foxing, etc. Better images of this engraving are available, but would have to travel some to photograph them.

I have a high speed connection, so if you would care to send me the large pic without cropping, I am sure I can do something with it. I believe you have enough posts to send email to individual members, so click on my user name and it should take you to a place to send me an email. Or not, as you prefer. As for the aperture introducing bowing to the image, I don't think so. Something else, including the possibility of poor glass, is causing that effect. But if you want to be sure, put it in manual, stop it down, and throw some light on it. The increased depth of field might take care of whatever barrel distortion you are seeing.

FWIW without beating a dead horse: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Canon-CanoS...290972454284
You won't believe how easy it is to use. Just plug it into a USB port and you are good to go as soon as your Mac recognizes it. Then no more worries about repro of these things. It's the one I use.

On the connection to Casilear via Toppan/Maverick partnership, of course it can only be inferred, for the reasons you gave. On the other hand, in view of subsequent developments, I am quite comfortable with the thought that it can be inferred. But I am glad to see more substantial data from the next decade such as you have unearthed.

You are very generous to give me access to your stuff. Absolutely, when the time comes you will be properly credited for anything I use, and will receive a copy of the article to review prior to publication. I just consider that s.o.p.

Before we go any further, check this one out and see if you can live with it.

Sure. The Jackson engravings are somewhat ancillary to this discussion, so I'm not going to get fussy about it. Seeing Jackson in glasses is odd to me, and I must confess that Casilear portrayed him with an "uncomfortable" look.

Is there something about this I should be noticing? Style comparisons will be difficult since this was not intended to be a vignette and the proportions are different (compare the size of his head to his clothes).

Essayk,

I fiddled around some more with the digital camera, and got a pretty good, straight shot of the Casilear engraving. The purpose of the engraving is two-fold: 1. Compare this on stylistic grounds with the Jackson engraving on the $50 Canal Note, and with the Franklin and Washington profile bust engravings on both the bank notes with these, and the 1851 stamp issues; 2. To establish Casilear's credibility as a portrait engraver capable of doing this kind of work on bank notes and stamps.

I will not comment on these issues until you and the rest of the forum decide what, if anything is relevant here. I do have some thoughts though. The engraving is a copy of a painting that was done of Jackson in 1829 by a Major Earle, a relative of Jacksons. It was borrowed for engraving from the then sitting Vice President of the United States, Martin Van Buren. The publisher of the entire 11" x 8" engraving, which took Casilear over a year to do, George Pope Morris, insisted in letters than the engraving follow the paintings of each of the seven Presidents depicted as close as possible. Jackson's painting by Earle was considered in 1834 to be the best likeness of him done up to that time. Politics may have played some role too, but that was never mentioned.



I did receive today a very nice email from Stephen Alonzo Schoff's great-great grandson Jonathan Small concerning my queries about his ancestor's relations to Casilear, to Toppan, Carpenter, and to bank note engraving. He thinks the two may have met in Paris in 1841. Schoff did engrave for TC starting in 1848 as a free-lancer, but it is hard to say what he did for whom, and when. Bottom line: Some nice additional Casilear material for me that I didn't have, and which I won't go into here, but nothing that can get us any further with the authorship of the bust profile engravings on the bank notes or stamps.