Woollrich, on the Thames, nine miles below London, is famous for its great arsenal, for a military academy, and for its large and ancient dock-yard.  The place is known the world over, and Mr. Turner has had a hand in spreading its reputation.  The vessels on the rippled surface of the river in misty sunlight have started for foreign voyages or are returning thence; and in the central foreground is a huge, dilapidated, lofty, dismantled old hulk of the last generation, which has breasted many a storm, fired many a gun, and received many a cannon-ball in its bosom, now peacefully at anchor, its days of active usefulness ended, but its presence an inspiration in every heart that can thrill with patriotic fervor.  The old Temeraire towed to her last moorings, as Turner saw her, was not more pathetic, but it took a Ruskin to explain her pathos to the world.  Mr. Dawson paints somewhat under the influence of Turner, and his picture strikes a rich, full chord in the diapason of British patriotism.  The sky has been handled with extreme care, and the distant warehouses, masts, and docks of mighty London are seen emerging through the mist.  The English marine-painter never tires of a subject like this, and probably never will, so long as Britain rules the waves.

IMPORTANT TO NOTE

Antique prints, etchings, engravings, and lithographs are printing processes which use steel, copper, stone or wood blocks or plates to produce a picture on paper.

Most antique prints and engravings, which are seen on the internet today, are bookplates.  Because they are pages from a book, there are multiple copies in existence.  This does not, however, mean that they are "reproductions" that have been printed recently.  Because they were, at some point, part of books, some have been preserved in excellent condition, while others show signs of age, as yellow spots or darkness on the edge of the page from being handled.

Engravings, lithographs, ect. are high quality pieces of art, as it took a highly trained artist many hours of work to produce one.  Although there may be multiple copies still in existence, the date of the item should be stated in the auction, thus giving the buyer an idea of it's age.