Description:
Copper-plate engraving of "QUEBEC, The Capital of NEW-FRANCE, a Bishoprick, and Seat of the Soverain Court." which was "Engrav'd & Printed by Thos. Johnston for Step. Whiting" illustrating the major buildings of Quebec and 20 points of interest identified in a key at the height of the conflict waged in colonial North America between France and England. British operations against the bastion of Quebec during the Seven Years’ War began in June 1759. Thomas Johnston (c.1708-1767), an engraver, printer, decorative painter, and japanner, produced several maps and this one view during his career. Merchant Stephen Whiting dealt in glass, mirrors, and picture frames, and occasionally sold prints and maps. Johnson's role as publisher suggests that he funded the engraving and printing, despite the fact that he had declared bankruptcy just months before he advertised the view of Quebec. Thomas Johnston’s engraving, advertised in the Boston Gazette of August 13, 1759, would have found an audience among New Englanders who had clashed with the French throughout the 18th century. The print provided a visual record of the scene of conflict although it was issued the month before the French surrendered Quebec to the English on September 17, 1759 after a battle outside Quebec on the Plains of Abraham where both the French General Montcalm and English General James Wolfe were killed. Whiting’s advertisement claimed that the view was “from the latest and most authentic French original,” and it has long been thought that Johnston based his view on one by François Chéreau (1680-1729), who had adapted an inset on a map of North America by Nicolas de Fer (1646-1720), first published in Paris in 1718. The extreme rarity of Chéreau’s print leads one to wonder if Johnston worked from an intermediate source that would have been more available to him. One possibility is a print of Quebec with 20 references that appeared in a London publication, "General Magazine of Arts & Sciences," in April 1759. Regardless of the image source, Whiting’s publishing venture did not improve his financial situation, and he again filed for bankruptcy in 1760. Johnston made a second version commemorating this victory with four additional lines of inscription detailing the British victory over the French and the surrender of Quebec. Framed prints, with an English or continental subject matter, were common early 18th century decorations in New England houses. See also HD 1384, "Prospective View of the Battle of Lake George," also by Johnston.
Label Text:
British operations against the bastion of Quebec during the Seven Years’ War began in June 1759. Thomas Johnston’s engraving, advertised in the Boston Gazette of August 13, 1759, would have found an audience among New Englanders who had clashed with the French throughout the 18 th century. Although issued before the culminating battle, the print provided a visual record of the scene of conflict, complete with 20 locations identified in a key. Johnston, an engraver, printer, decorative painter, and japanner, produced several maps and this one view during his career. Merchant Stephen Whiting dealt in glass, mirrors, and
picture frames, and occasionally sold prints and maps. His role as publisher suggests that he funded the engraving and printing, despite the fact that he had declared bankruptcy just months before he advertised the view of Quebec. Whiting’s advertisement claimed that the view was “from the latest and most authentic French original,” and it has long been thought that Johnston based his view on one by François Chéreau (1680-1729), who had adapted an inset on a map of North America by Nicolas de Fer (1646-1720), first published in Paris in 1718. The extreme rarity of Chéreau’s print leads one to wonder if Johnston worked from an intermediate source that would have been more available to him. One possibility is a print of Quebec with 20 references that appeared in a London publication, General Magazine of Arts & Sciences, in
April 1759. Regardless of the image source, Whiting’s publishing venture did not improve his financial situation, and he again filed for bankruptcy in 1760.
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