A Landscape, with Figures and Cattle, Erminia and the Old Shepherd - Richard Earlom

A 1777 mezzotint and etching by Richard Earlom, reproducing a classical pastoral scene by Claude Lorrain from the Duke of Devonshire's collection.

This print is a reproduction of a drawing by Claude Lorrain, executed by the British engraver Richard Earlom in 1777. It forms part of the Liber Veritatis, a collection of prints commissioned by John Boydell to document the drawings held in the collection of the Duke of Devonshire. The scene depicts a narrative moment from Torquato Tasso's epic poem, Gerusalemme Liberata, where the princess Erminia encounters an old shepherd in a rural setting.

Earlom employs a combination of etching and mezzotint to replicate the tonal qualities of the original drawing. The composition follows the conventions of the classical pastoral tradition, featuring a foreground populated by figures and livestock, a middle ground defined by dense, leafy trees, and a distant, atmospheric horizon. The figures are positioned to the left, while the cattle graze peacefully in the centre, creating a sense of balance and calm. The use of light and shadow is managed through delicate hatching and soft tonal washes, which suggest the depth of the woodland and the expanse of the open country beyond.

As a master of the mezzotint technique, Earlom successfully translates the fluid lines of Lorrain into a printed format that retains the character of the original sketch. The work reflects the eighteenth-century interest in the Grand Tour and the appreciation for classical subjects within European art. The inclusion of the publication details at the bottom of the print provides historical context, noting its origin in the Duke of Devonshire's collection and its release by the publisher John Boydell in Cheapside. This print offers an opportunity to observe the technical skill involved in eighteenth-century reproductive engraving, where the goal was to preserve the spirit of a master drawing for a wider audience of collectors.