Lot 220: Duke Friedrich Paul Wilhelm Württemberg (German, 1797-1860) La Balize, Louisiana, a pair one 33.5 x 41cm (13 3/16 x 16 1/8in); the other 32.5 x 41cm (12 13/16 x 16 1/8in) unframed

La Balize, Louisiana, a pair
watercolour over pencil
one 33.5 x 41cm (13 3/16 x 16 1/8in); the other 32.5 x 41cm (12 13/16 x 16 1/8in)
unframed
(2)

One of these works, titled Die Balize an der Mündung des Mississippi, was lithographed in 1828–35.

Duke Friedrich Paul Wilhelm of Württemberg journeyed from Hamburg to New Orleans in 1822 and travelled up the Mississippi, leaving America in 1824. Trained in the military, Württemberg had also received extensive education in the sciences, and it was his scientific interests that brought him to America, where he amassed a large natural history and zoological collection.

He subsequently published an account of his expedition in a work entitled First Journey to North America (Stuttgart, 1835), in which he described this town: "The few wooden houses which make up the place stand on piles in the midst of the water and slime, between high reeds; and one house can only be reached from another along plank footpaths."

Among the Duke's first impressions of the lower Mississippi, he noted that "nature seems to have destined this desolate region solely for habitation of giant reptiles and countless mosquitoes." Clearly impressed by the alligators, he remarked that in the warm season "exceedingly large numbers" of them inhabit the banks. "It seems a mystery how these obviously voracious creatures are able to find prey enough to still their hunger."