JOHN WEBBER: AND HIS AQUATINTS

Turnbull Library Record, Volume 2, Issue 2, 1 October 1969, Page 74

JOHN WEBBER: AND HIS AQUATINTS

A. A. St. C. M. Murray-Oliver

John Webber, ra, (1752-1793) was the official artist appointed by the Admiralty to Cook's third voyage. Biographical details are available in the Dictionary of National Biography (which gives the birth-date of 1750?), Beaglehole 1 and Bernard Smith 2 (who gives the death-date of 1798). These notes are concerned with points that are little known. Webber's Christian name too often appears as James. The origin of this error is shown below but unfortunately the wrong name was perpetuated in the catalogue 3 of the centennial exhibition of New Zealand art, which has been subsequently quoted elsewhere. Further, the New Zealand-born naturalist Dr Averil Lysaght 4 explains that Webber sometimes signed himself William, although more often John. (She also lists his bird paintings which, with his other natural history works, are preserved in the British Museum.)

The DNB records that Webber witnessed Cook's death, but Professor Beaglehole denies this. The Cleveley aquatint of the event is therefore more likely to be accurate than Webber's versions, often engraved. The third representation of it, by Zoffany, is purely imaginary. It is believed that Webber's portrait of his brother, exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1776, attracted the notice of Dr Solander and that this resulted in the artist's appointment to Cook on the third voyage. Yet it was as a landscape painter that he joined the Resolution and it is for his landscapes that he is known, although his work on the voyage necessarily covered every aspect. As a portraitist Webber is perhaps unfairly neglected.

The popular portraits of Cook are those by Dance, which have been engraved in numerous versions, becoming progressively less like the originals. But Dance was a fashionable professional portrait painter and one would expect that he flattered his subjects. His Cook appears romanticized, even idealized, to present the image the public expected. Cook's contemporaries described him as good-looking but plain, rather than handsome. Webber's portraits of him are probably more true to life. Engravings have been made from that done at the Cape of Good Hope, but the most interesting is that in the National Art Gallery, Wellington. Beaglehole gives its provenance, according to which the picture was painted in 1776 and given by Cook to his wife. In i 960 the oil painting was purchased in England by the New Zealand Government. The only other authentic portrait of Cook is that by William Hodges, official artist on the second voyage. The original is lost but an engraving from it by J. Basire, 1777, appears as the frontispiece to the official account of the second voyage, and has often been copied by other engravers.

Too few know Webber's portrait of Poedooa [Poetua, daughter of a chief of Raiatea], owned by the Admiralty but on loan to the National Maritime Museum at Greenwich. Her enigmatic beauty is remarked upon by both Beaglehole and Smith. Smith also considers Webber's conscientious attention to botanical detail in his landscapes, in which unusual prominence is given to trees, and human figures are introduced only as an incidental foil, reversing the usual procedure of the time.

After the 1776-80 voyage Webber was employed for some time by the Admiralty, making finished drawings to be engraved by a number of well-known specialists in this field. Because of the large number of plates and charts included in the three volumes, publication was delayed until 1784. It is for these plates that Webber is best known. All sixty-one are from his work, although William Ellis, surgeon's mate on the Discovery, also drew many very attractive landscapes, bird studies, etc, recorded by Beaglehole and Lysaght. As with the engravings of the first two voyages, many of Webber's are still being reproduced today.

The original paintings are scattered around the world more widely than those of any other of Cook’s artists. Beaglehole lists the whereabouts of these in his section on the Graphic Records of the voyage. Of particular interest are the sixty-six watercolours held in the Dixson Library of the Public Library of New South Wales, ‘apparently the finished designs for the engravings in the Voyage. Many are exact duplicates of other originals by Webber in the British Museum and the Bernice P. Bishop Museum, Honolulu. Among the most striking of Webber’s ethnological studies are those in the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology at Harvard University.

The Aquatints It is commonly stated that Webber published a series of sixteen aquatints in colour of Pacific views, between the years 1788 and 1792. This is correct, as far as it goes, but interesting variations to be found seem to have escaped notice. It seems always to be assumed that this series consisted of those plates published posthumously by Boydell. In the Turnbull collections, however, among the several made-up sets of engravings illustrating Cook's voyages, one volume contains several apparently rare variants.

The four earliest aquatints are dated 1787 (one lacking the month of publication) and are the joint production of Webber himself and Mrs Maria Catharina Prestel. These are all in sepia. The captions given below follow the varied presentation found on the prints, three of which do not seem to have been reproduced elsewhere, although the fourth appears also in the next series.

[l] Drawn & Etchd by I. Webber Aquatint by M. C. Prestel A VIEW IN ANNAMOOKA, ONE OF THE FRIENDLY ISLE's Vide Cooks last Voy. Vol. I. Chap. IV London Pub d 1787 by I. Webber N° 312 Oxford Street. [2] Drawn & Etchd by I. Webber Aqua Tinta by M C Prestel A VIEW IN MATAVAI, OTAHEITE. Vide Cooks last Voy. Vol. II Chap. II London Pub d Feb y 1 1787 by I. Webber N° 312 Oxford Street

[3] Drawn & Etch'd by I. Webber Aqua tinta by M. C. Prestel VIEW IN ULIETEA Vide Cook's last Voy. Vol. II Chap. VII London Publish'd Feb? 1 1787 by I. Webber N° 12 Oxford Street. [4] Drawn & Etch'd by I. Webber Aqua tinta by M. C. Prestel A VIEW IN PULO CONDORE Vide Cook's last Voy. Vol. 11l Chap. X. London Pub? Feb? 1. 1787 by I. Webber N° 312 Oxford Street.

Presumably Webber was not satisfied with Mrs Prestel's contribution to his first publications, for he next published the sixteen unnumbered aquatints listed below, between 1788-92. These have been bound in the order in which Boydell's publication has them and the latter have been interleaved in this Turnbull volume. Both Webber's own issues measure approximately 16x22 inches; Boydell's, 16x21 inches. Although the plate-marks and the coloured surfaces vary only infinitesimally, it would seem that Boydell's plates were re-drawn, although scrupulously carefully.

In each case Webber's first version is colour-washed in sepia and grey, giving a very beautiful and soft effect. (There is a second set of these in one of the other collections in the Alexander Turnbull Library.) Webber's second version is finely hand-finished in bright but soft colours in eight of the plates; the other eight remain in only the sepia and grey tonings of the first series. The third version occurs in the Boydell issue, below; heavier and darker in colouring. Titles are identical in every case. Only Boydell's plates are numbered, but sometimes so faintly as to be almost undetectable. Variations in captioning are given for the two Webber series. He was admitted as a member of the Academy in 1791. Throughout 'J' is given as T as was the practice then.

[i] View in Queen Charlotte’s Sound, New Zealand. I. Webber fecit . . . Pub? Oct* I. 1790 by I. Webber N° 312 Oxford Street

[nb Webber's second version, m full colour, and Boy dell's issue, carry identical text, including the reference to Cook's last voyage, but both have 'I Webber fecit R.A' - with Boydell as publisher of the final version.]

[2] Boats of the Friendly Islands. I. Webber R.A. fecit . . . Published Aug? 1 1791 . . . Webber's second version is not in full colour, the emphasis being on a blue wash.]

[3] A Sailing Canoe of Otahaite. I. Webber R.A. fecit . . . Pub? Aug? 1792 ... [All three Turnbull copies of this Webber print are identical, being basically in sepia with only a trace of blue; in all, as in the Boydell issues, the Cook voyage reference is restricted to 'Vol. 1' and there is no month of publication by Webber.]

[4] The Plantain Tree, in the Island ofCracatoa. I. Webber fecit, 1788 ... Pub? Nov? 1. 1788 ... [Again all three of Turnbull's Webbers are sepia with only a hint of slue.] [s] A View in Oheitepeha Bay, in the Island ofOtaheite. I. Webber, R.A fecit . . . Pub? Aug! 1. 1791 . . . [One copy in full colour, with the mountains markedly more blue than in the Boydell issues where they are pink-tinted.] [6] Waheiadooa, Chief of Oheitepeha, lying in State. I. Webber fecit. . . Publish'd July 1. 1789 . . . [One Webber issue in full colour.]

[7] View of the Harbour of Taloo, in the Island ofEimeo. I. Webber fecit. . . . Pub? July 1. 1789 . . . [One in full colour, although the sky is blue where it is pink in Boydell.] [B] A Toopapaoo of a Chief with a Priest making his offering to the Morai, in Huoheine. I. Webber fecit. R.A. . . . Pub. Oct. 1. 1789 . . . [The print in full colour bears only 'I. Webber fecit.' and the seated figure is pink; but it is brown in the Boydell print, which has 'R.A.' included.]

[9] The Resolution beating through the Ice, with the Discovery in the most eminent danger in the distance. I. Webber R.A. fecit . . . Publish'd Aug! 1. 1792 . . . [The three Webbers are pale sepia, with only a hint of grey. In some of the plates the reference to Cook's last voyage does not agree with the extract Boydell gives in his accompanying text. In this case it does, the entry being for 23 July 1779: but Beaglehole notes that one of the

original drawings by Webber of this scene, that in the Peabody Museum, Harvard University, identifies it as off Icy Cape and is dated 18 August 1778 - Cook's farthest point north.]

[lo] The Narta, or Sledge for Burdens in Kamtchatka. I. Webber fecit. . . . Pub? July 1. 1789 . . . [The blue wash is marked in the second version. In all, including Boydell's, the Cook reference is: 'NB not mention'd in Cooks, last Voyage.']

[ll] Balagans or Summer Habitations, with the method of Drying Fish at Si Peter & Paul. Kamtschatka. I Webber R.A. fecit .. . Pub? Aug! 1 1792 . . . [All the Webbers, pale sepia and grey.] [l2] View in Macao, Including the residence of Camoens, when he wrote his Lusiad. I. Webber fecit. 1788 . . . Pub d Aug* 1. 1788 . . . [All the Webbers, pale sepia and grey.]

13] View in Macao. I. Webber fecit. 1788 . . . Pub d Aug* 1. 1788 . . . Again, as above.] [l4] A View in the Island of Pulo Condore. I. Webber R.A fecit. . . . Pub? Aug! 1. 1792 . . . [All three in sepia, with a hint of grey. Re-drawn from the Webber Prestel aquatint of 1787.]

[ls] View in the Island of Cracatoa. I. Webber fecit . . . Pub? July 1. 1789 [All three Webbers in sepia, with background in grey.] [l6] The Fan Palm, in the Island of Cracatoa. I. Webber fecit. 1788. . . . Pub. Aug 1 1. 1788 . . [The second Webber version in full colour, the girl's skirt being pink, but white in the Boy dell print.]

Two Boydell Issues The Boydell title-page is notable for its two errors, in the names of Webber and Cook. In the case of Webber, this has caused confusion for 160 years. ‘Views in the South Seas, from drawings by the late James Webber, draftsman on board the Resolution, Captain James Cooke, from the year 1776 to 1780. With letter-press, descriptive of the various scenery, &c. These plates form a new series, and are of the same size as those engraved for Captain Cooke’s last voyage. The

drawings are in the possession of the Board of Admiralty. London: published by Boydell and Co. No. 90, Cheapside. Printed by W. Bulmer and Co. Cleveland-Row. 1808/

Because of the date on the title-page the Boydell plates are invariably given as having appeared in 1808: yet every one of the sixteen aquatints bears the date of publication as 1 April 1809. They are all finished in much heavier colouring than that used by Webber in his own earlier publication and, although attractive, they quite lack the charm and delicacy that is so apparent in the Webber plates when the Boydell are placed against them.

It has been left to Major J. R. Abbey 5 alone, in his invaluable definitive check-list, to have the last word on Boydell’s Views in the South Seas. He has discovered what has escaped all other researchers, that Boydell re-issued the Views probably in 1820-21 as the paper is watermarked 1819 and 1820. The first issue is watermarked ‘J- Whatman 1805’. Apart from the watermark, it appears impossible to differentiate between the 1809 and i82o(?) volumes unless, as is seldom the case, the original binding has been retained, inclusive of the paper label pasted on the front cover. Abbey quotes a label given by Hocken : 6 Views in the South Seas by James Webber, illustrative of Captain Cook’s Voyages, 16 plates, coloured, Price f 6 65., and thinks this may be the original label. I believe this to be so, and that the i82o(?) label is that given by Abbey: Views in the South Seas. From drawings by the late James Webber. London: Published by Boydell and Co. Cheapside. In the Turnbull collections are one copy of each of the Boydell issues, the second issue having been re-bound; and another second issue set had been broken up and bound into the made-up volume which also contains the Webber plates described above.

REFERENCES 1 Beaglehole, J. C. (ed) - The journals of Captain James Cook . . . v. 3, pt. 1. Cambridge, The Hakluyt Society [Extra series no xxxvi], 1967. 2 Smith, 8., European vision and the South Pacific, 1768-1850: a study in the history of art and ideas. Oxford, The Clarendon Press, i 960. 3 McLintock, A. H. (ed), National centennial exhibition of New Zealand art: catalogue. [Wellington], Department of Internal Affairs, 1940. 4 Lysaght, A. M., Some eighteenth century bird paintings in the library of Sir Joseph Banks (1743-1820). London, Bulletin of the British Museum (Natural History): Historical series, v. 1, no 6, 1959. s Abbey, J. R., Travel in aquatint and lithography, 1770-1860, from the library of J. R. Abbey: a bibliographical catalogue. 2 vols. London, privately printed at the Curwen Press, 1957. 6 Hocken, T. M., A bibliography of the literature relating to New Zealand. Wellington' The Government Printer, 1909.