Unattributed “The Inside of St. Pauls Cathedral from the West End to the Choir”

Unattributed. “The Inside of St. Pauls Cathedral from the West End to the Choir."  London: Bowles & Carver, 1793-1832. 11 ¼ x 16 ½ (paper).  Engraving.  Original hand color.  Margins trimmed to image and mounted on to 20th century fabric.  Fill and tear in bottom margin with some light stains.  Else, very good condition. This print is a perspective view, or vue d’optique, a special type of popular print published in England and on the continent during the eighteenth century.  These prints were a form of entertainment meant to be seen through devices called “optical machines,” “optiques,” or “peepshows.”  The prints were exhibited by traveling showmen in the streets throughout Europe and would also have been collected by those in the professional and upper classes who had the optical machines at home.  This machine used a lens to enhance for viewers the magnification and perception of three-dimensional depth of the prints.  A mirror was often used so that the perspective prints co