19th CenturyBotanical / PlantsBritishDining RoomFine ArtFood and WineFrench CountryKitchenMixed-Media

Black Hamborough Grapes by Mrs. Withers

Augusta Innes Withers (Mrs. Withers)
Black Hamborough Grapes

The well known English botanical illustrator Augusta Hanna Elizabeth Innes Withers (maiden name Baker; 1792, Gloucestershire – 1877, London), who signed her work “Mrs. Withers,” is know for her illustrations of John Lindley’s Pomological Magazine, Curtis’s Botanical Magazine and other botanical publications.  She was “Flower Painter in Ordinary” to Queen Adelaide and also to Queen Victoria.

Watercolor and gouache heightened with gum arabic.  Signed by the artist.

The annotation reads “Black Hamborough Grapes” which we believe is a reference to the Black Hamburg (Black Muscat or Muscat Hamburg), a grape used for making red wine which was developed by R. Snow in Bedeforshire England in 1850 by crossing Schiava Grossa and Muscat of Alexandria.

Perfect for cottage or country kitchen decor.

Exquisite details