1884 Cozzens / Scribner Chromolithograph American Yacht Signal Chart

A scarce 1884 Frederick Cozzens chromolithograph chart of the American yacht signals. The chart centers on an illustration of the small sailing yacht Yolande and is surrounded by three sections of flags. Flags B through W represent Code Signals. Flags 2 - 66 are Club Signals. And Flags I - VI are Night Signals. A digital image of the key to the chart is included for reference, but we do not have the original key.

Chromolithography

Chromolithography is a color lithographic technique developed in the mid-19th century. The process involved using multiple lithographic stones, one for each color, to yield a rich composite effect. Oftentimes, the process would start with a black basecoat upon which subsequent colors were layered. Some chromolithographs used 30 or more separate lithographic stones to achieve the desired product. Chromolithograph color could also be effectively blended for even more dramatic results. The process became extremely popular in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, when it emerged as the dominate method of color printing. The vivid color chromolithography produced made it exceptionally effective for advertising and propaganda imagery.

Publication History and Census

The chart was drawn by Frederick S. Cozzens and printed in multi-color chromolithograph by Charles Scribner's Sons to supplement U.S. Navy Lieutenant James Douglas Jerrold Kelley's American Yachts: Their Clubs and Races. Note, the chart was not published in the volume, but rather as part of an accompanying portfolio of watercolor sketches by Cozzens. Uncommon.