BUCK, Samuel & Nathaniel; - SOUTH WEST PROSPECT OF THE CITY OF WORCESTER, FINE COPPERPLATE ENGRAVING PUBLISHED IN 1732.
A fine original antique copperplate engraved panaroma of the South West Prospect of the City of Worcester by the most important and best 18th century topographical artists, the brothers Samuel and Nathaniel Buck, published in 1732. Image size approx. 12.4" x 31.5" (32cm x 80cm), professionally mounted and framed and glazed in very good quality gilt frame (by Bee Folios Fine Art, Worcester). Overall size including frame approx. 21" x 40" (53cm x 101.5cm). A remarkably fine clean bright impression complete with the text and key underneath image. Many of the major town panoramas of Samuel and Nathaniel Buck had text at their base, providing a description of the city and a key to the prospect or view. Much coveted, Bucks’ large panoramas are rarely found in such fine condition as this.
The old medieval bridge, demolished in the 1780’s, can be seen spanning the River Severn on the left of the print. The motte of Worcester Castle can be seen on the extreme right of the print. While an 18th century image, this view would have changed little from the later middle ages - although such "new" features as the smoking kilns of Dr Wall’s porcelain factory can be seen next door to the Old (Bishop’s) Palace, to the left of the cathedral. Boats are grouped by the Quay, in the area which is occupied by Brown’s restaurant, and a Severn 'trow' lowers its sail to pass underneath the bridge.
While the Domesday Book records only 141 holdings in the city (of which 5 belonged to Evesham Abbey), indicating a lay population of c.700, this is almost certainly an inaccurate summary - Droitwich had 150 holdings registered - and other documentary evidence suggests a more likely figure of c.2000. At this time only the King, the Bishop, tenants-in-chief (for example marcher lords like Ralph de Toeni and Earl Roger of Shrewsbury), or important sub-tenants of rural estates, would have owned land in the city, with the Bishop being the most influential landowner. The most valuable land would have been along the High Street market area, with rental values for land generally in the city varying from 4d. to 2s.(the annual rent for one group of 88 houses being just over 2s. 1d.). By 1170 rental incomes had increased substantially, with a holding of 12 houses netting 4s. 6d at this time.
While the city boundaries had still to be defined by a city wall during this early post-Conquest period, there is some evidence to suggest that settlement spread outside the northern line of the old Saxon defences (which were probably levelled at this time) into the area of the present Cornmarket, and northwards along Foregate Street (the northerly continuation of the High Street). By the late 12th century the churches of St Martin (Trinity Street) and St Nicholas (The Cross) had certainly become established in these areas, suggesting that their suburban parishes had already started to form at this time. A further suburb developed between Newport Street and Dolday down towards the river bridge, with the church of St Clement (founded c.1164) on the waterfront on the north side of this (the church was demolished in 1823, its present namesake now on the west bank of the river on Henwick Road). By 1268 the church of St Michael in Bedwardine had been established in the north-eastern part of the Close as a cemetery chapel to the cathedral, indicating that by this time a relatively large lay community were living within it - until the 19th century, however, subject to the authority of the church not the civic administration - although the church never took root in the town and was later demolished (the fate also of a Victorian successor, built in 1842, whose existence is now marked only by the gravestones of its churchyard).
Samuel and Nathaniel Buck were brothers who lived in England in the 18th century and were engravers and printmakers. Samuel did much work on his own but, when the brothers worked together, they were usually known as the Buck Brothers. More is known about Samuel than about Nathaniel. Samuel Buck was born in Yorkshire in 1696. After publishing some prints in that county, he moved to London. With Nathaniel he embarked on making a number of series of prints of "antiquities", which consisted of ruined castles and former religious buildings in England and Wales. Starting in 1724, they travelled around the countries, completing the sets of prints for the regions of England by 1738 and producing those for Wales between 1739 and 1742. These are commonly known as Buck's Antiquities. During this time they also worked on a series of townscapes in England and Wales entitled Cities, Sea-ports and Capital Towns.
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