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Show 11 completed, an average of 633 impressions had been pulled from each plate.6 Under such use, many of the copperplates became worn to the point that acceptable prints could no longer be pulled and reworking was necessary. This was most often done by redefining the image with an etching needle. Often this reworking was done by a different etcher, bringing yet another interpretation to the plate; redefinition of elements originally executed in aquatint were changed by the very nature of the fine, precise lines imposed over the image; new elements were introduced into the plate, "improving upon" the image, but distancing it further from the original watercolor. These new elements often introduced a more exotic mood into the prints, one considered advantageous for the promotion and sale of the financially beleaguered travelbook. It is important to remember that Tableau 25 was one of the first prints to be issued to subscribers. Much thought was usually given to the sequence in which prints were issued for such publications. The most interesting, compelling, and beautiful could usually be found in the first issues, in order to draw new subscribers and to encourage those already enrolled to continue. For Maximilian's Travels, this was almost certainly the case, since finding willing subscribers for the expensive publication had been so difficult. As Tableau 25 passed through its various states, the effort to enhance the image, in order to make it more appealing to these subscribers, becomes evident. In the first state of Tableau 25 (Figure 1.2) the original watercolor's desolate winter sky has been darkened. Light from either a pale sun or moon filters through the clouds, casting shadows onto the distance and |