“A Football Match, Scotland v. England” by William Overhand and Lionel Smythe, Signed Limited Edition Photogravure, 1889

This is the 1889 William H. Overend (1851-1898) and Lionel Smythe (1839-1918) first edition photogravure of the Calcutta Cup. The Calcutta Cup is a Rugby match between Scotland and England, that has been played over 100 times. The first match took place in 1879. This specific rendering depicts the 1885 match. The print was limited to 200 total pieces, to include 25 signed presentation editions. The print was published by the Fine Art Society of London on April 1, 1889. The artists Overhand and Smyth have gone to extraordinary lengths to capture the match in marvelous detail, even capturing details like the exhaled breath coming from the players’ mouths. Both artists worked for the “Illustrated London News”, it is thought that this work may have been commissioned by the publication. The 1885 match was played on a bitterly cold day on the pitch at Raeburn Place in Edinburgh, Scotland. The match finished in a 0-0 draw. There was a bitter background to this specific match due to the fact t