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Sixty Five Plates of Shipping and Craft

Artist Edward William Cooke (1811 - 1880)

Date1829

Object number00027361

NameBook

MediumInk on paper

DimensionsOverall: 312 x 260 x 30 mm, 1.6 kg

ClassificationsBooks and journals

Credit LineANMM Collection Gift from Vaughan Evans

Terms

DescriptionA book titled 'Sixty Five Plates of Shipping and Craft', drawn and etched by Edward William Cooke. First edition, London, 1829. This work was first privately published in 1829 with just fifty plates.This edition also published in 1829, contains the original 50 plates and a new project by Cooke; a series of 12 sketches made near Brighton and an additional three Coastal Sketches. Cooke was just 18 years old when the first edition was published.HistoryThe Fifty plates, and later Sixty Five Plates, were published when Edward Cooke was only 18 years old. He had shown early artistic talent that was no doubt encouraged by his father, the renown engraver George Cooke. The publication was acknowledged in its day for its accuracy of details but also in Cooke's wide choice of vessels and the appeal of the variety and interest of his settings. Cooke, despite his obvious skill at etching and engraving, moved to maritime painting in 1833 and became a highly regarded in that field, exhibiting at the Royal Academy just two years later. He travelled widely and had strong interests as a naturalist. Cooke became a Fellow of the Linnean Society, Fellow of the Geological Society and Fellow of the Zoological Society, and of the Society of Antiquaries. His geological interests in particular led to his election as Fellow of the Royal Society in 1863 and he became a Royal Academician the following year. Cooke was also an avid horticulturist. One of his most successful efforts, along with his friend James Bateman, is that of Biddulph Grange. The gardens designed by the two are still maintained and part of the National Trust of Britain.SignificanceEdward Cooke is still noted for his drawings and etchings of ships, rigging, ropes and all the minutiae of the sea. His various coastal scenes show a deep knowledge and understading of marine craft, seen here from his etchings of such ships as HMS VICTORY and the convict hulk DISCOVERY.