Apprenticed at the age of fourteen to an architect, Bone pursued independent art studies in evening classes at Glasgow School of Art, where he met Francis Dodd. Dodd moved to Manchester in 1895, and it was on a visit there in 1898 that Bone and Dodd made their first experiment in printmaking.

Bone made rapid progress, and that year produced his Glasgow etchings, inspired in concept by Meryon’s L’Eauxfortes sur Paris, and in practice by Whistler’s Thames etchings and D Y Cameron’s plates of Amsterdam. Bone was able to buy Cameron’s press, in 1898, when Cameron left Glasgow for London.

In 1901, engaged to Dodd’s sister, Gertrude, Bone, like Cameron, moved to London. After his move he abandoned etching for pure drypoint.

This print is an early proof, signed in pencil and annotated trial. It is one of only two impressions in the 4th state (of 5 trial states). There were a total of 8 impressions across these 5 states. (The total number of impressions was 131). Printed in brown-black ink with burr on japan.

The Apse, Léon Cathedral was one of four Spanish subjects engraved for the separate portfolio which accompanied the book Old Spain, written by Gertrude Bone and illustrated by Muirhead (collotype reproductions of drawings and watercolours).
Edition of 265. Each portfolio had two drypoints selected from the four. (The first plate of the subject was unpublished, though a total of 56 proofs were printed.)