Austria-Hungary, Empire. A Lithograph Depicting the Funeral of Empress Elisabeth of Austria

A well-preserved, full-colour lithograph depicting a grieving Emperor Franz Joseph at the tomb of his wife, Empress Elisabeth, in the Habsburg Imperial Crypt, shortly after her assassination by an Italian anarchist. The Emperor is surrounded by courtiers in full dress regalia on one side, and on the other side by Capuchin monks and hierarchs of the Catholic Church. The lower left corner bears the printer’s mark of “ANTON PLANK SOHN, WIEN”, and the image is situated above an inscription of “EMPEROR FRANZ JOSEPH I BIDS FAREWELL TO THE COFFIN OF THE EMPRESS” in German, Hungarian, and Czech. The image is situated within a black-painted wooden frame with a gilded border immediately surrounding the lithograph, retaining an intact glass face. The reverse retains a functional magnetic metal suspension loop, and bears a handwritten date of “1913” on the liner, in addition to a partially-legible name. It measures 46 cm (w) x 37 cm (h). Moderate scratching and loss of gilt finish is visible to the frame, but it remains in an overall near extremely fine condition.