Print Authentication: John Sartain
Do you own a print by John Sartain? Print Appraisers can appraise, research, authenticate and provide certificates of
authenticity (COA) for all prints
by John Sartain.
Mary, Queen of Scots, The Evening Before Her Execution. Engraving
John Sartain was a printmaker, remembered for pioneering mezzotint engraving in the United States.
Zachary Taylor. Engraving
Mezzotint is a printmaking process that allows the artist to create half-tone without hatching or stipple. Sartain was born in London, where he first studied painting and engraving. Sartain continued his artistic training in the United States after relocating to Philadelphia in 1830. Sartain produced engravings for banknotes and for Graham’s Magazine. Sartain eventually became a magazine editor and purchased the Union Magazine.
Engraving of John Sartain. From Sartain’s Union Magazine.
Alexander Pope. Engraving
Cinque (The Amistad Case) Engraving
The engraver also had literary interests and was a friend of Edgar Allen Poe, who he published in his magazine. Sartain’s engravings are now treasured by both print collectors and American historians.