Fourteen stereo views of Yosemite Valley and the Mariposa Grove of Big Trees. San Francisco: J. J. Cook, Watkin's [sic] Pacific Coast, No. 1 Montgomery St., cor. Post, n.d. [Circa mid 1870s early 1880s. Part of "Watkins' Pacific Coast" series published by his creditor J. J. Cook. In 1867 Watkins opened a photographic gallery that grew into his lavish Yosemite Art Gallery. Despite his success as an artist, he was not successful as a businessman and ended up losing his gallery to his creditor J. J. Cook. Cook and photographer Isaiah Taber took over the Watkins' gallery and rights to reproduce his photographs. These stereo views with the J. J. Cook imprint, mounted on cards with orange borders on the front and purple backs, are uncommon. Additionally, these are are some of the finest small format reproductions of Watkins' Yosemite images of 1861 and 1865 to 1866, often cited as Watkins' masterworks. Watkins returned to photograph Yosemite in 1875 and during the years of 1878 and 1881. The newly recognized Yosemite views made in the years 1878 to 1881 now are ranked by photographic historians as some of his most dramatic compositions. One of the views shows a wagon passing through the tunnel cut through the Wawona tree in the Mariposa Grove in 1881. All the cards are very good or better with sharp, fine images. (#167424).
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