Ridinger, Johann Elias (Ulm 1698 – Augsburg 1767). An Old Horse’s Upper Jaw-Bone as seen from Below. Fully executed study in grey and brown water colours over graphite. Inscribed by old hand in brown ink below left: Oberer Pferdekiefer (Upper Jaw-Bone). Ca. 1765. 257 x 145 mm.

with large watermark Rope-waving Acrobat on a Globe balancing on a Platform, similar to Heawood 1364 + 1365, but a bit larger and much finer and more detailed. The paper itself corresponding to those Dutch papers Ridinger used only

“ for  the  fine  illumination ”  for  the  colored  works

since “it is the most decent and best for such a task” as he states in the preface of his “Main Colours of the Horses”.

Left of the inscription traces of deleted date or year (…9?). – Below right inscribed by old hand with pencil: Joh. Elias Riedinger (sic!) f. – Verso traces of previous mounting at the corners and narrow stripes at the middle of side margins. A needle-pin-small puncture restored and nearly invisible from the front. Otherwise absolutely fresh. – Set into an acid-free passepartout with 23.5-carat gilt stamped artist’s name and dates.

Unparalleled  within  the  drawing  portfolios  described  by  Thienemann

and also not among the about 1849 works comprehended in the 829-lot Ridinger-section in Weigel’s Catalogue of left drawings of 1869, and in the collection of 234 drawings sold at auction in 146 lots by Wawra in Vienna on May 19 ff, 1890 resp.

Only the legendary album of the Counts of Faber-Castell containing 95 drawings – for the most part purchased about 1830 directly from the Ridinger heirs and thus not gone through Weigel’s hands – contained an “Animal Jaw Drawing” dated 1718 as together the earliest one of the album. Thus  thematically  in  the  Ridinger  œuvre  nearly  matchless ,

completely  executed  anatomical  study

of extraordinarily artistic and collectable fascination, only in the age picking up again what 45 years before the youth once occupied and now wished to be formulated as

The  Horse-Buyer’s  First  Sight

For besides the jaw of Faber-Castell’s – not described in detail – there is in Ridinger’s complete œuvre of drawings as well as engravings nothing to be traced that could be drawn up for comparison regarding format and richness of details.

So in the 11^th portfolio dedicated exclusively to the horse there are, among others, several studies of horses’ heads etc (nos. 3, 5, 18) but no bone studies of the kind here.

The same in regard to the Neue Thier Reis Büchel of 1728, Th. 725-736, dedicated to studies of hounds.

As the only one known bone studies the Neues Zeichnungsbuch of 1742 contains a dog’s skull, Th. 738, and beside other skeletons two of dogs, Th. 740. The 4-sheet continuation by the younger son Johann Jacob confined again to outer parts of the horse.

The same maybe passes still for the 6-sheet set Th. 753 f./St. 1346-49 published by Jer. Wolff Heirs known to Thienemann in only two sheet and supplemented only by Stillfried in 1876. For the present the kind of those sheets 1346-47 described by Stillfried as 23 single parts of horse heads and Six complete and Six fragmentary Horse Heads resp. has to be left undecided here. However, with just 17 x 28 cm only negligibly larger than the drawing here, the sheets allow only very small, for the first one even just tiny studies. Of the same format by the way also the two other sketchbooks.

The likeness of the format on the other hand suggesting that the drawing here quite possibly was thought for a following series, but like many ones – to think only of the fable drawing Th. p. 278 cc – was held over in favor of other projects. So both sketchbooks originally were intended more extensive: the 1728 one, inscribed as “First Part”, as well as the other one which in accordance with the title should contain also winged game, but missing in the later said edition enlarged by Johann Jacob, too, and there even was dropped from the title.

The  several  parts  and  areas  of  the  jaw-bone  numbered  up  to  37

comparable to the drawings for the first plates of the “Main Colours” on possible omission of the numbers 1, 3, 6, 8 + 29.

The scientific theme of just this drawing – far more than at the studies of the sketchbooklets largely to be understood as artistic exercises and copies – quite according to his efforts to impart always and above all knowledge, too.

much more than hunting in all its rich variety, culminating in the posthumously completed suite of the “Wondrous Stags and Other Animals” with the unusual forms of antlers and other variations of nature and those famous coloured works that the master himself saw as the zenith of his enormous work: the “Kingdom of the Animals” the already mentioned “Main Colours” and the coloured 2^nd edition of the “Monkeys”, Th. 541-550.

when the preparations for the coloured works were advanced enough to purchase the Dutch paper that is not to be found in any of the other works. Relating to the papers Heawood quotes for the first one – “Amsterdam, c. 1769” used for Tirion’s Nieuwe Atlas, the maps of which, however, dating from 1753. The second in the fly leaves of an Ortelius in the British Library, and with the addition ZOONEN in an Ortelius, too, of the Royal Geographic Society. Besides these Heawood mentions a quite similar watermark used by Van der Ley about 1770.

Boguslav  Jolle  started soon after 1870 to collect drawings which he brought together on many travels at home and abroad over the next two decades. If he took over the jaw-bone from the Domela Nieuwenhuis collection (Lugt 356b) as the source of a large part of his German drawings must kept open by now. His own 1567-lot collection was sold at auction by Helbing in Munich in 1895. Whether the Horse’s Upper Jaw-Bone was among them and whether Helbing took it over for himself (see his Ridinger catalogue above) cannot be traced by now, too. All in all beside the jaw of 1718 here then and now his

and in addition a quite singular evidence of his lifelong efforts to spread knowledge to everybody, not at least directed to the youth. In such a way then indeed

a  quite  personal , delicate  cabinet  drawing ,

a drawing seeking its equals. – Offered without glass + frame.

Offer no. 28,861  /  price on request

“ Thank you Mr. Niemeyer – I will take it! … It should look very nice in my new office. Best regards ”

(Mr. J. R. L., January 6, 2006)