Etchings Institutions search term: dowdeswell
The Cock and the Pump |  Hunterian Art Gallery (46914) | |
| Number: | 321 | |
| Date: | 1887 | |
| Medium: | etching | |
| Size: | 222 x 144 mm | |
| Signed: | butterfly at lower right | |
| Inscribed: | no | |
| Set/Publication: | no | |
| No. of States: | 1 | |
| Known impressions: | 7 | |
| Catalogues: | K.304; M.299; W.235 | |
| Impressions taken from this plate (7) | ||
TECHNIQUE
An etching, with no drypoint, The Cock and Pump shows Whistler's use of stopping out (covering etched lines with varnish to prevent further biting with acid) at the top of the plate, where the clouds are less deeply bitten than the lines of the rest of the composition. The varnish must also have covered the upper roofline of the house at far right, as the top of that outline is similar in strength to the clouds and is considerably fainter than the lower roofline.
PRINTING
Most impressions were printed in black ink on ivory laid papers. One, for instance, is noted (not in Whistler's hand) as the '1st impression', and is numbered 'No 2' possibly by Whistler, but this may refer to a sale rather than a printing record (
). Several sheets have watermarks, including a crown over 'GR' (); a sheet removed from a book, with 'LR' countermark (); and a 'PRO PATRIA' watermark (). They were trimmed to the platemark and signed on the tab with a butterfly and 'imp.' to show that Whistler printed them.
). Several sheets have watermarks, including a crown over 'GR' (); a sheet removed from a book, with 'LR' countermark (); and a 'PRO PATRIA' watermark (). They were trimmed to the platemark and signed on the tab with a butterfly and 'imp.' to show that Whistler printed them.