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Eduard Hildebrandt, Reise um die Erde (Journey Round the World), Berlin: R. Wagner [and Raimund Mitscher], [c.1862–64]

33 of 34 chromolithographic plates after watercolours by Eduard Hildebrandt, lithographed by R Steinbock (30) and W Loeillot (3), each mounted on thick cardstock measuring 45.5 x 56 cm, with original printed labels behind the cardstock of each image; original publisher’s deluxe binding in full red morocco-grain cloth over bevelled boards, lavishly stamped in gilt with decorative scrollwork and corner medallions representing four continents: Europa, Afrika, Amerika, and Asien; title lettered in large gilt on front cover, gilt ornamental rule to borders; all edges gilt; cream-glazed endpapers; spine with matching decorative gilt rule.
22 x 18 in (56 x 45.5 cm)

Example:
Label from Plate No. 32 (Ceylon. Colombo):
“No. 32. Ed. Hildebrandt. Ceylon. Colombo.
Chromofacsimile von R. Steinbock nach der Aquarelle aus der Sammlung „Reise um die Erde”.
Verlag von R. Wagner, Berlin, Zimmerstr. No. 92/93.”

(Translation: Plate no. 32. Ed. Hildebrandt. Ceylon, Colombo. Chromolithographic facsimile by R. Steinbock after the watercolour from the collection “Journey Around the World”. Published by R. Wagner, Berlin, Zimmerstrasse no. 92/93.)

The rare partial suite consists of twenty-seven chromolithographic views, out of the original thirty-four, all based on original watercolours by the renowned German artist and world traveller Eduard Hildebrandt. The plates were issued loose and mounted on card, as here, with each plate bearing its original printed label affixed to the verso, specifying the plate number, title, chromolithographer, series details, and publisher’s imprint.

Titles and Sr. No.s, as mentioned on the label of each image (not in numerical order), include: 1. Markt in Cairo (Neue Folge. No. 1) / 2. Pyramiden von Gize und Sphinx / 3. Villa d’Este in Tivoli / 4. Benaras am Ganges / 5. Soroen. Mitternacht / 6. Sonnenuntergang am Chow-Phya-Flusse in Siam / 7. Der Hafen von Macao. Der Elephant mit dem Baumstamm / 8. Rangoon / 9. Siamesische Familie auf dem Wasser / 10. Dorf am Nil / 11. Schloss Windsor. Hauptansicht / 12. Strasse in St. Franzisco mit einem Dampf-Omnibus / 13. Cadix / 14. Grotte des Posilippo / 15. Ceylon. Point de Galle / 16. Sevilla / 17. Whampoa. Sonnenuntergang / 18. Nagasacki. Der Hafen / 19. Singapore. Der Hafen / 20. Ladrone-Inseln / 21. Ceylon. Wakawell / 22. Siam. Bangkok / 23. St. Franzisko. Der Hafen / 24. Ceylon. Colombo / 25. Foo-choo-foo. Der Hafen / 26. Brücke bei Peking / 27. Kairo / 28. Siam, Bangkok / 29. Peking / 30. Rangoon (Der Elephant mit dem Baumstamm) / 31. Suez / 32. Hong Kong

FROM BENARES TO SAN FRANCISCO—HILDEBRANDT’S MASTERWORK OF GLOBAL TRAVEL AND 19TH-CENTURY COLOUR LITHOGRAPHY

Eduard Hildebrandt’s Reise um die Erde stands at the intersection of travel art, ethnographic documentation, and romantic landscape tradition. This richly illustrated portfolio is among the grandest pictorial travel publications of the 19th century, chronicling the Prussian artist’s circumnavigation of the globe between 1862 and 1864. Issued under the patronage of the Prussian Crown and endorsed by Alexander von Humboldt, the volume exemplifies mid-19th-century European interest in the exotic, the picturesque, and the topographically precise representation of non-Western geographies.

Over the course of his two-year journey, Hildebrandt travelled through Egypt, India, Ceylon, Burma, China, Japan, the Philippines, North and South America, and parts of Europe, producing over 400 watercolours painted en plein air. The present chromolithographs—printed in Berlin under the direction of R. Wagner and later R. Mitscher & Co.—represent the most visually compelling and geographically diverse selections from this body of work. Scenes range from the Ghats of Benares and the bazaars of Cairo to the harbourfronts of Macao and Hong Kong, a round street in Peking, the port of San Francisco, and a moonlit Tivoli.

Technically, the portfolio represents a high point in 19th-century chromolithographic reproduction. Each plate was produced using the Aquarelle process—a demanding stencilled technique developed to replicate the luminosity and texture of original watercolours. Mounted on thick card and housed in ornate cloth portfolios, these prints were designed to offer an immersive visual experience for collectors, connoisseurs, and armchair travellers alike.

The oversized folio format, richly gilt red cloth bindings, and painstaking lithographic process reflect the era’s ambition to convey global vistas with both aesthetic splendour and documentary rigour. The hand-mounted plates evoke the immediacy of field artistry, capturing atmospheric effects alongside architectural precision.

Unlike many of his contemporaries, Hildebrandt balanced picturesque exoticism with careful observation of daily life, labour, ritual, and urban environments—foregrounding lived realism rather than merely colonial spectacle. His work was first exhibited to acclaim in London in 1866 and at the Crystal Palace in 1868, establishing his reputation as one of the most technically accomplished and widely travelled German artists of his time.

Today, complete sets—especially those retaining both original portfolios—are increasingly scarce on the market. Institutional holdings are largely confined to national collections such as the Berlin Kupferstichkabinett and the British Museum. A landmark in 19th-century travel publishing, Reise um die Erde remains a testament to Hildebrandt’s ambition and the period’s fascination with global exploration—a cornerstone for collectors of travel literature, chromolithography, and world tour iconography.

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