Unique Convolute of Publications & Photographs relating to the German Engineering Company Havestadt & Contag
NP: NP, 1862-1941. First edition. Hardcover. The Havestadt & Contag engineering/architecture firm was founded in the early 1880's by Max Contag and Christian Havestadt. The company became famous for large projects such as the building of the Teltowkanal, expansion of the Rhein river between Wesel and Bodensee, the Klodnitzkanal, Bonner Pferdebahn (horse race track in Bonn), Vorgebirgsbahn, Reichsbank-Neubauten, industrial architecture, bridges, as well as many other projects. At the 1904 Louisiana Purchase Exposition (Weltausstellung in St. Louis), Havestadt & Contag won the highest award, the Grand Prix and the gold medal. By 1908, both were awarded the prestigious title of "Geheimer Baurat."
1) Original manuscript by Christian Havestadt. Bericht der Schinkelreise 1878 (Reisebericht). Sm. folio. Maroon cloth with gold lettering on cover and blind-stamped border. nd. In 1877/78 Christian Havestadt was presented with a grant for a trip to various countries for winning the Schinkelpreis of the "Architekten-Verein zu Berlin." Havestadt's 232 page manuscript details his visits in Sweden, Denmark, the United States (Pittsburgh), Netherlands, and Great Britain. With detailed technical descriptions of various constructions, harbors, bridges, etc. Includes eleven reproductions of partly hand-colored & b/w fold-out plates. Plates hand-colored by Havestadt.
Plates: I) Fold-out (18" x 16 1/4") original b/w drawing on linen-backed parchment showing a "Ladekran für schwere Sandsteinblöcke" (crane for the moving of heavy boulders of sandstone) at the St. Martin canal in Paris.
II) 18" x 22 1/4" fold-out of a printed map of Denmark, Slesvig Holstein, Lauenburg, which was taken from the Skole-Atlas by C. C. Brix and J. L. Jensen. Map hand-colored by Havestadt. Part of original front wrapper and index page from atlas pasted on verso of card.
III) Large 19 1/4" x 32 1/4" printed fold-out plan of the harbor in Copenhagen (M. Lüders, 1862). Hand-colored by Havestadt.
IV) Small 5 3/4" x 7 3/4" printed plan of the Helsingor harbor in Denmark. Partly hand-colored by Havestadt.
V) Printed fold-out plan (12 3/4" x 19") of the harbor in Malmö in Sweden. Partly hand-colored by Havestadt.
VI) Printed fold-out plan (6" x 17") of the harbor in Helsingborg in Sweden. Partly hand-colored by Havestadt.
VII) 12 1/2" x 21" fold-out with b/w reproductions of technical drawings by Havestadt showing harbors near the Sund in the Baltic Sea.
VIII) Reproduction of a b/w drawing (5 1/2" x 9") of the Monongahela Bridge in Pittsburgh.
IX) Plan (7 1/2" x 10") in brown & purple of the waterway's in Rotterdam leading to the Seeland province.
X) B/w plan (7 1/5" x 12") of the small Dutch island "Feyenoord" (Fyenoord).
XI) 7 1/2" x 12" b/w plan showing the harbor section of the "Rotterdamer Handelsvereinigung" on Feyenoord.
With 16 additional smaller b/w reproductions of technical drawings pasted next to text throughout.
Age wear on binding. One-third of lower backstrip missing, remaining section almost detached from spine. Binding in poor, interior in overall very good condition.
2) Havestadt & Contag (Königliche Bauräte). Der Bau des Teltowkanals. Berlin, 1906. Wilhelm Ernst & Sohn. "Sonderdruck aus der Zeitschrift für Bauwesen Jahrgang 1906." Elephant folio. 26, 11pp. Original three-quarter cloth over printed paper-covered boards. Special edition, published to celebrate the opening of the Teltowkanal in Berlin, which was completed in June 1906. The channel was created to allow a shorter waterway between the Elbe and Oder rivers. Illustrated with a large partly colored fold-out plan, one double-page with architectural drawings colored in green, four b/w plates in photogravure (printed on two leaves), four full-page engineering drawings, as well as 47 in-text b/w reproductions of photographs and drawings, all documenting the building and completion of the channel. Text in German. Staining on part of top-edge on front and back board. Slight age toning and soiling on binding. Boards in overall good, interior in very good condition.
3) Lucas, F. Havestadt & Contag. Königliche Bauräte 1882-1902. Übersicht der Arbeiten und Bauten der Regierungs-Baumeister Havestadt & Contag in der Zeit von 1882-1902. Berlin, nd (1902). Julius Becker. 4to. 21pp. Finely gold-stamped maroon cloth. Dentelles. All gilt edges. Silk ribbon marker. Green endpapers richly decorated with golden floral designs in the Jugendstil. Published to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the company. Contains an overview of the projects and buildings by Havestadt & Contag from 1882-1902. Contents: I. Eisenbahnbau / II. Strassenbahnen, Chaussee- und Wegebau / III. Kanalbau, Wasserstrassen und Hafenanlagen / IV. Städt. Wasserversorgungen, Entwsserungen, sowie sonstige Wasserbauten / V. Brückenbau, Eisenkonstruktionen des Hochbaues und sonstige Ingenieurbauten / VI. Vermessungswesen, Stadtbebauungspläne, Terrainaufnahmen u. A. / VII. Hochbau / VIII. Industrielle Anlagen / IX. Literarische und akademische Tähtigkeit. Text in German. Most likely published for internal use only. Very minor rubbing on binding. Near fine condition.
4) Havestadt & Contag, Berlin-Wilmersdorf. Ausgeführte Entwürfe. Berlin, nd (ca. 1910). Self published. Oblong 8vo. 42pp. Original textured paper-covered boards with gold lettering on cover. Decorative endpapers. With 42 designs, most accompanied by b/w reproduction of photographs. Includes 6 partly colored plans. Designs shown are of various bridges, train stations & tracks, residences, several businesses, Teltow channel, and others. Text in German. Very minor rubbing on binding. Overall very good condition.
5) Havestadt, Christian. Über die Verwendung von Heberverschlüssen bei Kammerschleusen: Theoretische Untersuchungen über das Hebersystem unterstützt durch Versuche an der Machnower Schleuese des Telowkanals. Berlin, 1908. Wilhelm Ernst & Sohn. Inscribed by the author (?) on blank leaf in front: "Meinem lieben?, ??, 1907." 4to. [4], 70pp. & folding plates. Full black leather with gold lettering on front cover. Dentelles. Marbled endpapers. Havestadt's work explains the use of moveable seals & locks in floodgate chambers, using engineering examples from the Teltowkanal. Illustrated with b/w reproductions of drawings and diagrams. Two fold-out leaves in rear, one showing b/w technical drawings of the Teltowkanal, the other shows a chart "Polytrope für die Dimensionierung von Saugkesseln." Text in German. Minor age wear on binding. Very good condition.
6) Original photographs :
a) Josef & Lisette Havestadt and family, horse, carriage and driver in Dülmen (Bavaria) in front of their house, which was also a pub they owned. Sign in front of the building reads "Schenkwirtschaft von Wwe. Jos. Havestadt. Hochfeines Bairisch Alt. Frisch. Bier." Josef and Lisette were the parents of Christian Havestadt. Few annotations from the period in pencil on card stock, including names and the date November 13, 1919, in the 81st year of his life. Albumen print (6 1/2" 8 3/4") mounted on heavy card stock (upper left and lower right corner of card stock missing). Photograph in very good condition.
b) Max Contag? and his son? in front of a residence, Prinzregentenstrasse 24 around 1910?. Albumen print (4 1/2" x 6 1/2") mounted on heavy card stock. Very good condition.
c) Max Contag? and his family (?) posing on a tennis court. Albumen print (4 1/2" x 6 1/2") mounted on heavy card stock. Very good condition.
d) Havestadt and Contag posing in suits. Platinum print (5 1/4" x 9 1/2") with caption in ink including date of 1894.
e) Lady in white dress (possibly Havestadt or Contag's wife?). Matte collodion? Carte de visite (3" x 6 1/2") with stamp and address of photographer's atelier on verso of card (Karl Schipper Hof Photograph in Wiesbaden). Very good condition.
7) Miscellaneous:
Fold-out (8" x 12 1/4") company stationary. Letterhead is a b/w reproduction of a photograph showing the exterior of the company's office in Berlin-Wilmersdorf.
8) Havestadt, Christian. Die Niedrigwasseranreicherung der Spree aus der Elbe über den Elbe-Spree-Oder-Kanal. Berlin, 1941. Gauverlag Mark Brandenburg GmbH., Zweigverlag Cottbus - Cottbuser Anzeiger. 4to. 44pp. Original printed wraps. Published in early 1940 in the Third Reich, the work explains the plan to artificially channel water from the Elbe to the Spree river. Foreword states that through the annexation of the Sudetenland the northern area of the Elbe is now on German territory and therefore accessible to realize the project. Illustrated with charts and some diagrams. Fold-out map in rear. Text in German. Minor staining on wraps. Very good condition.
9) Denkschrift der Oberlausitzer Braunkohlenbergbau-Gesellschaften über den Schutz des Spreewaldes von unerwünschten Überflutungen. 4to. ND (ca. 1929). 20pp. & 3 fold-out plates. Original printed wraps. Memorandum by the Oberlausitzer Braunkohlenbergbau-Gesellschaften on the protection of the Spreewald in case of unwanted flooding. In 1915, Havestadt & Contag proposed the building of an artificial channel (Elbe-Spree Kanal) to prevent the flooding of the area. Illustrated with three fold-out plates in rear of which two are partly colored. Text in German. One leaf "Betr.: Hochwasserschutz des Spreewaldes," laid-in. Some staining on wraps. Wrappers in good, interior in very good condition.
10) Reich, A. Eine deutsche Ingeniörfirma. Berlin-Friedenau. Deutscher Kommunal-Verlag. nd (ca. 1914). Sonderabdruck aus der Zeitschrift für Kommunalwirtschaft und Kommunalpolitik. 8vo. Original printed wraps. Six-page pamphlet with a short history of the Havestadt & Contag company. Illustrated with four in-text b/w reproductions of photographs. Text in German. Minor creasing and chipping on wraps. Overall good condition. fair to vg. Item #32923
Unique collection giving a captivating insight into 19th-century German engineering.
Price: $6,500.00