1859 Fourth of July NYC Fireworks Centerfold, Napoleon at Magenta, Dickens — Jul 16

🗞️ HARPER'S WEEKLY · July 16, 1859
Complete Issue · New York

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A visually spectacular and historically significant issue — a dramatic double-page centerfold of Fourth of July fireworks over New York City as seen from Brooklyn Heights, Napoleon III at the Battle of Magenta, a Michigan Southern Railroad disaster, and a continuing Dickens serialization. The fireworks centerfold is one of the most frameable and displayable illustrations in the entire 1859 run — New York's skyline lit by Independence Day rockets as seen from across the harbor.

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🎆 FOURTH OF JULY FIREWORKS — NEW YORK CITY
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🎆 DOUBLE-PAGE CENTERFOLD — "FIREWORKS AT NEW YORK ON THE EVENING OF THE 4TH OF JULY, AS SEEN FROM BROOKLYN HEIGHTS"
The visual showpiece of the issue and one of the most spectacular illustrations in the entire antebellum Harper's Weekly run — a dramatic double-page centerfold of the Fourth of July fireworks display over New York City, seen from the elevated vantage point of Brooklyn Heights across the East River. The composition captures the full panoramic sweep of the New York skyline — the same skyline glimpsed in the April 23 centerfold from the church spire — now lit from above by bursting rockets, the harbor waters reflecting the explosions below. In 1859 the Brooklyn Bridge did not yet exist, and the East River was crossed only by ferry; Brooklyn Heights was already famous as one of the finest viewpoints in America, from which Washington had watched his army evacuate in 1776. A vivid, dramatic, and very frameable piece of New York City history, American patriotic history, and Victorian spectacle — one of the finest centerfolds in this 1859 run.

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⚔️ NAPOLEON III AT THE BATTLE OF MAGENTA
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💥 FULL PAGE — "THE WAR IN ITALY — THE EMPEROR NAPOLEON AT THE BATTLE OF MAGENTA"
A full-page illustration of Napoleon III at the Battle of Magenta — the decisive French-Piedmontese victory of June 4, 1859, in which the combined forces under Marshal MacMahon drove the Austrians from the fortified town of Magenta near Milan, opening the road to the Lombard capital. The battle was so significant that the color magenta — a vivid reddish-purple — was named after it, the dye having been discovered in the same year. Napoleon III commanded in person, making this a primary document of one of the most consequential battles of the Italian Risorgimento.

👤 QUARTER PAGE — "MARSHAL MacMAHON"
A portrait of Marshal Patrice de MacMahon — the French commander whose corps carried the day at Magenta and who would later become President of the French Republic (1873-1879). A significant piece of French military and political history.

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🚂 THE MICHIGAN SOUTHERN RAILROAD DISASTER
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💥 HALF FRONT PAGE — "SCENE ON THE MORNING AFTER THE LATE TERRIBLE ACCIDENT ON THE MICHIGAN SOUTHERN RAILROAD"
A dramatic front-page illustration of the aftermath of a disaster on the Michigan Southern Railroad — a significant piece of American railroad safety history, published at a moment when American railroads were expanding rapidly with often inadequate safety standards.

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📚 CHARLES DICKENS — "A TALE OF TWO CITIES" CONTINUES
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✍️ CONTINUING SERIALIZATION — "A TALE OF TWO CITIES" BY CHARLES DICKENS
A continuing installment of A Tale of Two Cities — the novel whose themes of revolution and liberation resonate alongside Napoleon's Italian campaign in this issue.

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📋 CONDITION
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I photograph every page of every issue so you can inspect the condition closely before purchasing. Please review all images carefully and don't hesitate to ask any questions — I'm happy to provide additional detail or close-up shots of any page, illustration, or area of concern before you buy.

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📌 DETAILS
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Publication ········ Harper's Weekly
Date ··············· July 16, 1859
City ··············· New York
Format ············· Illustrated newspaper, complete in 16 pages

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📦 SHIPPING & PRESERVATION
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• Stored in an acid-free protective bag and flat-shipped in a padded envelope with heavy cardboard reinforcement
• Fully tracked for your peace of mind

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