Henry VIII Founder of Trinity College, from a Picture in the College

Aquatint with original hand colouring
27 x 21 cm

Published by Rudolph Ackermann (1764 – 1834).

Henry VIII, the founder of Trinity College. This engraving was published in Ackermann’s ‘History of Cambridge’, a study of the architecture and notable figures of Cambridge’s colleges.

Rudolph Ackermann was an Anglo-German bookseller, inventor, lithographer, publisher and businessman. In 1795 he established a print-shop and drawing-school at 96 Strand. Here Ackermann set up a lithographic press and began a trade in prints. He later began to manufacture colours and thick carton paper for landscape and miniature painters. Within three years the premises had become too small and he moved to 101 Strand, in his own words “four doors nearer to Somerset House”, the seat of the Royal Academy of Arts. Between 1797 and 1800 Ackermann rapidly developed his print and book publishing business, encompassing many different genres including topography, caricature, portraits, transparencies and decorative prints.

Condition: Generally very good; slight toning to within platemark.