Italy - Rome; Georg Balthasar Probst (Augusta, 1732–1801) - Prospectus Ecclesiae Sanctae Mariae Majoris,//Prospectus Templi S. Iohannis Lateranensis, - 1761-1780

Pair of etchings and burin impressions on laid paper, reinterpreted from the celebrated branches of Giovanni Battista Piranesi and contemporaneously tinted with watercolor and gouache. Both specimens feature the rare and sought-after period workmanship “a trasparente” for optical boxes (zograscopio / mondo nuovo): windows, loggias, porches, domes and the moon in the sky were meticulously hand-carved, with the reverse side bearing colored tissue sheets (yellow, orange, carmine, green and blue) to simulate nocturnal illumination in backlighting.
• Edge trim: Both plates have been trimmed to the copperplate edge. In the second print part of the upper margin with the French title mirrored is preserved, while in the first the lower incised title has been removed and recovered by cutting and pasting the original titles on the back.
• Abrasions and stains: There are light browning from paper oxidation, surface dirt mainly on the white margins, and some small damp spots and halos around the pierced moon of the first plate.
• Tears and handling wear: Small marginal tears reinforced by back supports; in the second plate there is a light abrasion with color loss along the upper margin above the mirrored inscription.
• Integrity of the tissue sheets: The arrangement of the engravings and the tissue sheets on the back is surprisingly intact and well preserved, fully maintaining the original luminous effect (with a small restoration patch on the reverse of the first plate).