Close-ups
Framed and on the wall
Frame and rooms are illustrations of how the print could look, drawn to its real size; it is sold unframed unless the description says otherwise.
Flora and Fauna
Antique Sugarcane Chromolithograph, Teboe Troeboe, Java 1892
€895
$1,000 · £750
Original print, not a reproduction
Ships worldwide from the Netherlands, insured and tracked. 14-day returns.
- Date
- 1892
- Sheet size
- 23.6 × 15.7 in (60 × 40 cm)
- Condition
- Good. One plate in very good condition for its age. Light, even age toning and minor surface marks consistent with atlas plates. Slight marginal wear. Colors remain well preserved. Plate mark visible. No significant tears or losses.
- Island
- Java
- Collection
- Flora and Fauna
- Period
- Netherlands Indies, 1850 and after
- Stock no.
- f_48059752
- Color
- Printed color
What the condition grades mean
- Excellent
- Bright and clean, with no faults worth mentioning.
- Very good
- Only light signs of age, such as faint toning.
- Good
- Normal signs of age for a sheet of this period: toning, some foxing, small marks or neat old repairs.
- Fair
- Clear faults such as staining, tears or repairs, priced to match.
Every fault we see is written in the condition note, and the whole sheet is shown uncropped in the photos.
Antique Sugarcane Chromolithograph, Teboe Troeboe, Java 1892
Description
This large chromolithographic plate depicts the sugarcane variety known as Teboe Troeboe and was published in Berlin in 1892 as part of Friedrich Soltwedel’s important botanical study Formen und Farben von Saccharum officinarum L. und verwandten Arten. Printed by W. A. Meyn, the plate exemplifies the precision and visual clarity characteristic of late nineteenth-century agricultural illustration.
Plate XXVIII illustrates Teboe Troeboe through two cut cane sections shown at full scale. The variety is rendered in subdued green tones with subtle mottling and clearly articulated nodes, allowing close comparison of internode length and surface texture. The restrained coloring and clean background emphasize structural detail over ornament, reflecting the scientific intent of the series.
These chromolithographic plates were produced during a period when sugarcane cultivation played a central role in the agricultural economy of Java and the wider Dutch East Indies. Soltwedel’s plates were issued separately from the accompanying text volume and are now increasingly scarce, particularly in well-preserved examples.
With its tall vertical format and calm, natural palette, this plate works well both as a collector’s botanical specimen and as a decorative object, suited to interiors seeking understated botanical imagery with historical depth and scientific authenticity.
Condition report
One plate in very good condition for its age. Light, even age toning and minor surface marks consistent with atlas plates. Slight marginal wear. Colors remain well preserved. Plate mark visible. No significant tears or losses.
Framing suggestions
Best framed vertically. A dark walnut, ebonized, or soft antique gold frame paired with an ivory or parchment mat provides a refined, museum-style presentation. Wide matting is recommended to preserve the original margins and emphasize the vertical proportions.
Technique: Chromolithography
Maker: W. A. Meyn after F. Soltwedel, Berlin, 1892
