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613 results found
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(total 13 pages)
 BARRABAND, Jacques (1767/8-1809)
La Perruche fridytutah [Plum-headed Parakeet (Psittacula cyanocephala)] [Pl. 74]
[Pl. 74]. Paris: 1801-05. Colour-printed stipple engraving, finished by hand, engraved by Bouquet, printed by Langlois. Very good condition. Trimmed within plate mark on three sides. Image size (including text): 11 1/2 x 8 5/8 inches. Sheet size: 13 x 9 5/8 inches.
Jacques Barraband was the finest ornithological artist of his time. The son of a weaver at the Aubusson Factory, he is first mentioned as a pupil of Joseph Malaine (1745-1809), the eminent flower painter, and is known to have worked for both the Gobelin Factory and the porcelain factory of Sèvres. His most important work was undoubtedly the 300 or so drawings that he produced for François Levaillant's three great ornithological monographs, the greatest of which was the Histoire Naturelle des Perroquets (1801-1805).
#8825 $1,250.00  
 BARRABAND, Jacques (1767/8-1809)
[Le Lori Perruche violet et rouge (Red and Blue Lory [Eos histrio])] [Pl. 53]
[Pl. 53]. Paris: 1801-05. Colour-printed stipple engraving. Sheet size: 19 x 12 inches.
Extremely rare proof impression: one of only 10 copies printed.
This very endangered Lory is found as three species or sub-species on the islands of Nenusa, Talaud, Sangi and Siao. They inhabit coastal areas with trees and forest inland up to 5000 feet.
Jacques Barraband was the finest ornithological artist of his time. The son of a weaver at the Aubusson Factory. He is first mentioned as a pupil of Joseph Malaine (1745-1809), the eminent flower painter, and is known to have worked for both the Gobelin Factory and the porcelain factory of Sèvres. His most important work was undoubtedly the 300 or so drawings that he produced for François Levaillant's three great ornithological monographs, the greatest of which was the Histoire Naturelle des Perroquets (1801-1805).
This print is from a very rare issue of Levaillant's Perroquets published on large format paper (papier vélin colombier satiné), with the plates printed avant-lettre and, according to the livraison wrappers, limited to ten sets. This issue is not recorded in any of the standard bibliographies.
#3905$2,500.00
 BARRABAND, Jacques (1767/8-1809)
Le Perroquet à face rouge, dans son premier âge [Puerto Rican Amazon (Amazona vittata)] [Pl. 108 (bis)]
[Pl. 108 (bis)]. Paris: 1801-05. Colour-printed stipple engraving. Very good condition. Plate mark: 13 x 10 1/4 inches. Sheet size: 17 3/4 x 11 5/8 inches.
Jacques Barraband was the finest ornithological artist of his time. The son of a weaver at the Aubusson Factory, he is first mentioned as a pupil of Joseph Malaine (1745-1809), the eminent flower painter, and is known to have worked for both the Gobelin Factory and the porcelain factory of Sèvres. His most important work was undoubtedly the 300 or so drawings that he produced for François Levaillant's three great ornithological monographs, the greatest of which was the Histoire Naturelle des Perroquets (1801-1805).
#8810$1,250.00
 BARRABAND, Jacques (1767/8-1809)
Le Perroquet à franges souci mâle [Pl. 130]
[Pl. 130]. Paris: 1801-05. Colour-printed stipple engraving. Very good condition. . Plate mark: 13 x 10 1/8 inches. Sheet size: 17 3/4 x 11 1/2 inches.
Jacques Barraband was the finest ornithological artist of his time. The son of a weaver at the Aubusson Factory, he is first mentioned as a pupil of Joseph Malaine (1745-1809), the eminent flower painter, and is known to have worked for both the Gobelin Factory and the porcelain factory of Sèvres. His most important work was undoubtedly the 300 or so drawings that he produced for François Levaillant's three great ornithological monographs, the greatest of which was the Histoire Naturelle des Perroquets (1801-1805).
#8801$2,000.00
 BARRABAND, Jacques (1767/8-1809)
[Le Perroquet Bouquet (Red-necked Amazon [Amazona arausiaca])] [Pl. 135]
[Pl. 135]. Paris: 1801-05. Colour-printed stipple engraving, finished by hand, engraved by Bouquet, printed by Langlois. Sheet size: 19 1/4 x 12 5/8 inches.
This print is from an apparently unrecorded issue of Levaillant's Perroquets published on large format paper (probably 'papier vélin colombier satiné'), with a scratch proof of the title and plate number, but otherwise avant-lettre. This issue is not recorded in any of the standard bibliographies.
The Red-necked Amazon (or Amazona arausiaca) is an endangered species found in the wild only on the island of Dominica in the Caribbean, where it's local name is 'Jaco'. Levaillant saw a living specimen in Amsterdam, and noted (in error) that it was a native of Brazil, although recording Buffon's opinion that it was from Guiana.
Jacques Barraband was the finest ornithological artist of his time. The son of a weaver at the Aubusson Factory, he is first mentioned as a pupil of Joseph Malaine (1745-1809), the eminent flower painter, and is known to have worked for both the Gobelin Factory and the porcelain factory of Sèvres. His most important work was undoubtedly the 300 or so drawings that he produced for François Levaillant's three great ornithological monographs, the greatest of which was the Histoire Naturelle des Perroquets (1801-1805).
#6445$2,500.00
 BARRABAND, Jacques (1767/8-1809)
Le Perroquet Lori-unicolor [Lory (Lorius sp.)] [Pl. 125]
[Pl. 125]. Paris: 1801-05. Colour-printed stipple engraving. Very good condition. Plate mark: 13 x 10 1/8 inches. Sheet size: 17 3/4 x 11 1/2 inches.
Jacques Barraband was the finest ornithological artist of his time. The son of a weaver at the Aubusson Factory, he is first mentioned as a pupil of Joseph Malaine (1745-1809), the eminent flower painter, and is known to have worked for both the Gobelin Factory and the porcelain factory of Sèvres. His most important work was undoubtedly the 300 or so drawings that he produced for François Levaillant's three great ornithological monographs, the greatest of which was the Histoire Naturelle des Perroquets (1801-1805).
#8783$1,250.00
 BARRABAND, Jacques (1767/8-1809)
[Le Petit perroquet vert (Black-billed Amazon [Amazona agilis])] [Pl. 105]
[Pl. 105]. Paris: 1801-05. Colour-printed stipple engraving. Sheet size: 19 x 12 1/2 inches.
Extremely rare proof impression: one of only 10 copies printed.
The Black-billed Amazon or Black-billed Parrot is a native of Jamaica (mid-montane limestone forest, especially Cockpit County, with some sightings from John Crown Mountains) and is currently on the CITES endangered list.
Jacques Barraband was the finest ornithological artist of his time. The son of a weaver at the Aubusson Factory, he is first mentioned as a pupil of Joseph Malaine (1745-1809), the eminent flower painter, and is known to have worked for both the Gobelin Factory and the porcelain factory of Sèvres. His most important work was undoubtedly the 300 or so drawings that he produced for François Levaillant's three great ornithological monographs, the greatest of which was the Histoire Naturelle des Perroquets (1801-1805).
This print is from a very rare issue of Levaillant's Perroquets published on large format paper (papier vélin colombier satiné), with the plates printed avant-lettre and, according to the livraison wrappers, limited to ten sets. This issue is not recorded in any of the standard bibliographies.
#3903$2,500.00
 BARRABAND, Jacques (1767/8-1809)
Le petit Perroquet vert [Black-billed Amazon (Amazona agilis)] [Pl. 105]
[Pl. 105]. Paris: 1801-05. Colour-printed stipple engraving. Very good condition. Trimmed to plate mark on the right side. Plate mark: 13 1/8 x 10 1/4 inches. Sheet size: 17 3/4 x 11 5/8 inches.
The Black-billed Amazon or Black-billed Parrot is a native of Jamaica (mid-montane limestone forest, especially Cockpit County, with some sightings from John Crown Mountains) and is currently on the CITES endangered list.
Jacques Barraband was the finest ornithological artist of his time. The son of a weaver at the Aubusson Factory, he is first mentioned as a pupil of Joseph Malaine (1745-1809), the eminent flower painter, and is known to have worked for both the Gobelin Factory and the porcelain factory of Sèvres. His most important work was undoubtedly the 300 or so drawings that he produced for François Levaillant's three great ornithological monographs, the greatest of which was the Histoire Naturelle des Perroquets (1801-1805).
#8802$1,250.00
 BARRABAND, Jacques (1767/8-1809)
Orange-chinned Parakeet. (La Perruche à gorge rouge) (Brotogeris sp.)] [Pl. 46]
[Pl. 46]. Paris: 1801-05. Colour-printed stipple engraving. Very good condition. Plate mark: 13 x 10 1/8 inches. Sheet size: 19 3/8 x 12 1/2 inches.
Jacques Barraband was the finest ornithological artist of his time. The son of a weaver at the Aubusson Factory, he is first mentioned as a pupil of Joseph Malaine (1745-1809), the eminent flower painter, and is known to have worked for both the Gobelin Factory and the porcelain factory of Sèvres. His most important work was undoubtedly the 300 or so drawings that he produced for François Levaillant's three great ornithological monographs, the greatest of which was the Histoire Naturelle des Perroquets (1801-1805).
#8784$1,250.00
 BARRABAND, Jacques (1767/8-1809)
[Perroquet à face rouge male (Hispaniolan Amazon [Amazona ventralis])] [Pl. 109]
[Pl. 109]. Paris: 1801-05. Colour-printed stipple engraving. Sheet size: 19 x 12 inches.
Extremely rare proof impression: one of only 10 copies printed.
Native to Haiti, the Dominican Republic and some offshore islands, and introduced to Puerto Rico. This bird remains common but numbers are suffering from habitat loss, trapping and hunting. Generally found in pairs or small flocks they inhabit all forested areas and forage in cultivated areas.
Jacques Barraband was the finest ornithological artist of his time. The son of a weaver at the Aubusson Factory, he is first mentioned as a pupil of Joseph Malaine (1745-1809), the eminent flower painter, and is known to have worked for both the Gobelin Factory and the porcelain factory of Sèvres. His most important work was undoubtedly the 300 or so drawings that he produced for François Levaillant's three great ornithological monographs, the greatest of which was the Histoire Naturelle des Perroquets (1801-1805).
This print is from a very rare issue of Levaillant's Perroquets published on large format paper (papier vélin colombier satiné), with the plates printed avant-lettre and, according to the livraison wrappers, limited to ten sets. This issue is not recorded in any of the standard bibliographies.
#3901$2,500.00
 BARRABAND, Jacques (1767/8-1809)
[Perruche à Chaperon Bleu (Bechstein's Violet-necked Lory [Eos squamata riciniata])] [Pl. 54]
[Pl. 54]. Paris: 1801-05. Colour-printed stipple engraving. Sheet size: 19 3/4 x 12 inches.
Extremely rare proof impression: one of only 10 copies printed.
A sub-species native to the Weda Islands and the northern Moluccas where their favoured habitat is coastal areas with tree cover and coconut plantations.
Jacques Barraband was the finest ornithological artist of his time. The son of a weaver at the Aubusson Factory, he is first mentioned as a pupil of Joseph Malaine (1745-1809), the eminent flower painter, and is known to have worked for both the Gobelin Factory and the porcelain factory of Sèvres. His most important work was undoubtedly the 300 or so drawings that he produced for François Levaillant's three great ornithological monographs, the greatest of which was the Histoire Naturelle des Perroquets (1801-1805).
This print is from a very rare issue of Levaillant's Perroquets published on large format paper (papier vélin colombier satiné), with the plates printed avant-lettre and, according to the livraison wrappers, limited to ten sets. This issue is not recorded in any of the standard bibliographies.
#3906$2,500.00
 BARRABAND, Jacques (1767/8-1809)
Perruche à tête bleue, femelle [Rainbow Lory (Trichoglossus haematodus)] [Pl. 25]
[Pl. 25]. Paris: 1801-05. Colour-printed stipple engraving, finished by hand, engraved by Bouquet, printed by Langlois. Very good condition. Plate mark: 13 x 10 1/8 inches. Sheet size: 19 1/2 x 12 3/4 inches.
Jacques Barraband was the finest ornithological artist of his time. The son of a weaver at the Aubusson Factory, he is first mentioned as a pupil of Joseph Malaine (1745-1809), the eminent flower painter, and is known to have worked for both the Gobelin Factory and the porcelain factory of Sèvres. His most important work was undoubtedly the 300 or so drawings that he produced for François Levaillant's three great ornithological monographs, the greatest of which was the Histoire Naturelle des Perroquets (1801-1805).
#8852$1,500.00
 BARRABAND, Jacques (1767/8-1809)
Perruche Ara Guarouba femelle [Sun Conure (Aratinga euops)] [Pl. 19]
[Pl. 19]. Paris: 1801-05. Colour-printed stipple engraving, finished by hand, engraved by Bouquet, printed by Langlois. Very good condition. Plate mark: 10 7/8 x 8 7/8 inches. Sheet size: 19 x 13 1/4 inches.
Jacques Barraband was the finest ornithological artist of his time. The son of a weaver at the Aubusson Factory, he is first mentioned as a pupil of Joseph Malaine (1745-1809), the eminent flower painter, and is known to have worked for both the Gobelin Factory and the porcelain factory of Sèvres. His most important work was undoubtedly the 300 or so drawings that he produced for François Levaillant's three great ornithological monographs, the greatest of which was the Histoire Naturelle des Perroquets (1801-1805).
#8845$1,500.00
 BARRABAND, Jacques (1767/8-1809
[Perruche sincialo (Ring-necked Parakeet [Psitticula krameri manillensis, female])] [Pl. 42]
[Pl. 42]. Paris: 1801-05. Colour-printed stipple engraving. Sheet size: 19 3/4 x 12 inches.
Extremely rare proof impression: one of only 10 copies printed.
The Ring-necked, or Indian Ring-necked Parakeet is one of four sub-species of the P. krameri, and is a favourite as a captive breed.
Jacques Barraband was the finest ornithological artist of his time. The son of a weaver at the Aubusson Factory, he is first mentioned as a pupil of Joseph Malaine (1745-1809), the eminent flower painter, and is known to have worked for both the Gobelin Factory and the porcelain factory of Sèvres. His most important work was undoubtedly the 300 or so drawings that he produced for François Levaillant's three great ornithological monographs, the greatest of which was the Histoire Naturelle des Perroquets (1801-1805).
This print is from a very rare issue of Levaillant's Perroquets published on large format paper (papier vélin colombier satiné), with the plates printed avant-lettre and, according to the livraison wrappers, limited to ten sets. This issue is not recorded in any of the standard bibliographies.
#3900$2,500.00
 BARRABAND, Jacques (1767/8-1809)
Red-bellied Macaw (L'Ara Macavouanne) [Pl. 7]
[Pl. 7]. Paris: 1801-05. Colour-printed stipple engraving, finished by hand, engraved by Bouquet, printed by Langlois. Sheet size: 19 1/4 x 12 5/8 inches.
This print is from an apparently unrecorded issue of Levaillant's Perroquets published on large format paper (probably 'papier vélin colombier satiné'), with a scratch proof of the title and plate number, but otherwise avant-lettre. This issue is not recorded in any of the standard bibliographies.
Jacques Barraband was the finest ornithological artist of his time. The son of a weaver at the Aubusson Factory, he is first mentioned as a pupil of Joseph Malaine (1745-1809), the eminent flower painter, and is known to have worked for both the Gobelin Factory and the porcelain factory of Sèvres. His most important work was undoubtedly the 300 or so drawings that he produced for François Levaillant's three great ornithological monographs, the greatest of which was the Histoire Naturelle des Perroquets (1801-1805).
#14826$2,000.00
 BARRABAND, Jacques (1767/8-1809)
Variété du Lori à collier [Purple-naped Lory (Lorius domicellus)] [Pl. 95 (bis)]
[Pl. 95 (bis)]. Paris: 1801-05. Colour-printed stipple engraving, finished by hand, engraved by Bouquet, printed by Langlois. Sheet size: 19 3/4 x 12 1/2 inches.
This print is from an apparently unrecorded issue of Levaillant's 'Perroquets' published on large format paper (probably 'papier vélin colombier satiné'), with a scratch proof of the title and plate number, but otherwise avant-lettre. This issue is not recorded in any of the standard bibliographies.
Levaillant describes this beautiful bird as a colour variety of of the 'Perroquet Lori á collier jaune'.
Jacques Barraband was the finest ornithological artist of his time. The son of a weaver at the Aubusson Factory, he is first mentioned as a pupil of Joseph Malaine (1745-1809), the eminent flower painter, and is known to have worked for both the Gobelin Factory and the porcelain factory of Sèvres. His most important work was undoubtedly the 300 or so drawings that he produced for François Levaillant's three great ornithological monographs, the greatest of which was the Histoire Naturelle des Perroquets (1801-1805).
#6447$2,500.00
 BATEMAN, James (1811-1897)
A Monograph of the Odontoglossum
London: Savill, Edwards & Co. for L.Reeve & Co., [1867-]1874. Folio (20 1/2 x 14 1/4 inches). Half-title. 30 hand-coloured lithographed plates by Walter Hood Fitch, printed by Vincent Brooks or Vincent Brooks, Day & Son. 20th-century blue morocco by Sangorski & Sutcliffe, covers panelled in gilt, with fillets and a decorative roll, spine in six compartments with raised bands, lettered in second and third, and with initials 'H.C.S.' and the date '1961' at the foot of the spine, the other compartments with double fillet borders around single large centrally-placed flower tools, gilt turn-ins, gilt edges. Provenance: Clare Howard (Corley Castle, Carlisle, early pencil inscription on half title); H.C.S. (binding, dated 1961).
A fine copy of the greatest work on the most beautiful of all the 'cool' orchids - the genus Odontoglossum - illustrated with magnificent plates by 'the most outstanding botanical artist of his day' (Blunt & Stearn 'The Art of Botanical Illustration' [1994] p.265)
Bateman intended the work to be made up from 'at least a dozen parts' (Introduction), but difficulties in obtaining specimens led him to complete the work in six parts (with each part containing 5 plates). Fitch's plates represent some of his finest work, executed when he was at the height of his artistic powers. His talents are particularly suited to the depiction of Orchids which allow him to demonstrate his 'incredible ability in dealing with complicated botanical structures' (Blunt & Stearn p.264).
The Odontoglossum genus was not successfully introduced to Europe until relatively late in the nineteenth century. It had long been known that the genus was rich 'in species pre-eminent for the loveliness and delicacy of their flowers' (Introduction), but the mistaken belief on the part of growers that all orchids required hot humid conditions to thrive prevented (with a few accidental exceptions) the successful cultivation of any of the 'cool' orchids.
In about 1860 it finally came to be appreciated that the species which lived at high altitudes (Bateman notes that Odontoglossum are not found below 2500 feet) thrive in cool temperatures and dry air. Armed with this information the so-called 'system of cool treatment' was developed by growers (Bateman's input included his Guide to Cool Orchid Growing, published in 1864), and the knowledge that those without an orchid-house could finally enjoy the beauties of the orchid gave fresh impetus to the spread of interest in orchids in general and the Odontoglossum genus in particular.
'Extremely variable in their markings, there are over three hundred known species of Odontoglossum in Mexico and South America… As dealers competed to obtain them, the monetary rewards of "cornering the market" led to secrecy concerning the native habitats of newly discovered varieties.' (The Orchid observed 20). Bateman notes in the introduction that the explosion of interest in the genus was such that three independent expeditions to New Grenada 'found themselves sailing for the same destination in the same steamer on the same errand!'
Great Flower Books (1990) p.73; Nissen BBI 88; Stafleu & Cowan TL2 343.
#18194$17,000.00
 BIGELOW, Jacob (1787-1879)
American Medical Botany, being a collection of the native medicinal plants of the United States, containing their botanical history and chemical analysis, and properties and uses....
Boston: Cummings and Hilliard, 1817-20. 3 volumes (9 11/16 x 6 3/8 inches). 60 coloured plates comprising 10 hand-coloured copper engravings and 50 aquatint plates printed in colours 'à la poupée' and occasionally finished by hand. Half title in second and third volume. Contemporary three quarter maroon calf and marbled boards, gilt-lettered spines. Minor wear to extremities. Scattered foxing. Bookplates on front pastedowns. Blindstamps on titlepages and some plates. Plates also with some minor foxing. Overall very good. In a half morocco box.
The first American book with color-printing, and also a foundation work in American botanical studies, notable for its fine plates.
Bigelow, a native of Massachusetts, attended medical school at the University of Pennsylvania, where he became keenly interested in botany as a student of Benjamin Smith Barton, then a professor of materia medica as well as the leading botanist in the United States. Following his graduation in 1810 he entered private practice in Boston, and himself became a professor of materia medica, at Harvard Medical School, in 1815. His botanizing had already produced his Florula Bostoniensis in 1814, and once installed at Harvard he began work on this, his best known publication.
According to Bigelow's own later account, he at first intended to produce the plates for his work by printing engravings and having them hand-colored. He decided that this would be too expensive, since he envisioned an edition of 1000 copies with sixty plates each. Ultimately he printed the plates using aquatint, with the ink applied to the plates "á la poupée", a method by which the different color inks are daubed onto the printing plates with a piece of cloth. Richard Wolfe, in his book on Bigelow, asserts that a process of creating plates by etching stone was used, but recent work by Philip Weimerskirch and others has established that the aquatint process was used, and in fact Bigelow has left us a very specific account of the book's production. Up to this time no one had printed plates by aquatint in the United States, although within a few years emigrant artists such as John Hill were to take the art to a very high standard. In any case, the medium served well, and the plates are very beautiful indeed.
Bigelow originally issued his work in six parts, intended to be bound in three volumes, between the fall of 1817 and the spring of 1821; however, the titlepages are dated 1817, 1818, and 1821. The book received favorable notices as it appeared, and one, Walter Channing's review in The North American Review, discussed the production of the plates in particular. Channing names William B. Annin and George Girdler Smith as the engravers and printers of the plates. Once they had become skilled in the printing technique they were able to produce 'several hundred' plates a day. At this rate it must have taken the two men about a year of work to produce all of the plates for the book. Annin is also notable for being one of the first American globe-makers.
Bigelow took great care over the physical appearance of his book (many commentators have remarked on the beauty of its typography as well as the plates). In writing European correspondents he was apologetic about its appearance; he was familiar with what was being done in Europe and knew his pioneering American production was not on the same level. He told his friend James Edward Smith that he was "ashamed that the low state of the arts in this country does not suffer us to produce better engravings." Despite his misgivings, American Medical Botany is a beautiful and significant work in the history of American botany and color printing.
Bennett, p.11; Meisel III, p.378; Pritzel 773; BM Natural History 1:162; Nissen 164; Austin 205; Roylance, American Graphic Arts (Princeton, 1990), p.94; Wolfe, Jacob Bigelow's American Medical Botany (1979), passim; Reese, Stamped with a National Character 10.
#14346$7,500.00
 BOOTH, William Chandler (1804?-1874) & Alfred CHANDLER (1804-1896)
Illustrations and Descriptions of the plants which compose the natural order Camellieæ, and of the varieties of Camellia Japonica, cultivated in the gardens of Great Britain
London: C.Baynes for John & Arthur Arch, 1831. Volume I (all published), folio (14 5/8 x 10 1/2 inches). 40 hand-coloured engraved (or lithographed) plates, all heightened with gum arabic, after Chandler, 8 by S.Watts, 22 by Weddell, the others unsigned. (Expert, almost imperceptible, repair to upper blank margin of title and preface, occasional very slight craquelure to the gum arabic on the foliage, occasional light spotting or soiling). Expertly bound to style in green straight-grained morocco, covers with elaborate wide border in gilt and blind built up from various fillets and roll tools, with large cornerpieces composed from various small tools, spine in six compartments with raised bands, lettered in the second and fourth compartments, the others with elaborate repeat overall decoration in gilt, gilt turn-ins, marbled endpapers, t.e.g.
One of the most attractive of all the works on Camellias, with highly finished plates after the drawings of Alfred Chandler. This 'handsome and rare' (Blunt) work was published in three states: the present copy is in the most desirable of the three, with the 'very fine large plates, beautifully coloured with opaque pigments' (Dunthorne)
The work was issued with the plates in three states: uncoloured, coloured and coloured and highly finished. All were from Alfred Chandler's original drawings, most of which were based on specimens from the collection of his father who was owner and proprietor of a nursery at Vauxhall. 'The name Camellia was given by Linnaeus in honor of George Joseph Camellus or Kamel, a Moravian Jesuit who traveled in Asia and wrote an account of the plants of the Philippine Island, Luzon, which is included in the third volume of John Ray's Historia Plantarum (1704)... Most of the cultivated forms are horticultural products of C. Japonica, a native of China and Japan, which was introduced into Europe by Lord Petre in 1739. The wild plant has red flowers, recalling those of the wild rose, but most of the cultivated forms are double' (Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th edition, 1911).
The present work includes plates and descriptive text (including details of the plant's first appearance in Great Britain, a physical description and some details of its cultivation and propagation) of 40 species or varieties. Camellia Japonica, of course, figures prominently, with plates of the species, together with 16 varieties bred from the species by the Chinese and 19 English-bred varieties. In addition, plates and descriptions of the Maliflora, Oleifera, Reticulata and Sasanqua are also included. The work ends with 8pp. on the 'Propagation and Culture' of the plants
Dunthorne 77; Great Flower Books (1990) p.80; Nissen BBI 209; Stafleu & Cowan TL2 651.
#13445$45,000.00
 BOUCHARD, Maddalena
Aiglon de Nid [Nesting Eagle] [Pl. 9]
[Pl. 9]. [Rome: Bouchard & Gravier, 1775]. Etching with engraving, coloured by hand. Very good condition. Image size (including text): 14 7/8 x 12 3/8 inches. Sheet size: 20 3/4 x 14 7/8 inches.
A beautiful, exuberant image from one of the rarest colour-plate bird books 'Recueil de cent-trente-trois Oiseaux des plus belle especes'.
Maddalena Bouchard may be considered by some as a primitive among bird artists; however, while her birds are not true to nature in the conventional sense, they have more exuberance and charm than almost any other ornithological art with the possible exception of Manetti's Ornithologia (1765-76). Bouchard was also responsible for plates in Bonelli's Hortus Romanus (Rome 1772-93), which was also published by Bouchard and Gravier.
Cf. Anker 53; cf. Nissen IVB 124; cf. Fine Birds Books (1990), p. 79; cf. Ripley and Scriber p. 37
#7300$800.00
 BOUCHARD, Maddalena
Faucon avec le colier [Collared Albanella Falcon] [Pl. 39]
[Pl. 39]. [Rome: Bouchard & Gravier, 1775]. Etching with engraving, coloured by hand. Very good condition apart from some very light foxing. Image size (including text): 15 x 12 1/4 inches. Sheet size: 20 5/8 x 14 7/8 inches.
A beautiful, exuberant image from one of the rarest colour-plate bird books 'Recueil de cent-trente-trois Oiseaux des plus belle especes'.
Maddalena Bouchard may be considered by some as a primitive among bird artists; however, while her birds are not true to nature in the conventional sense, they have more exuberance and charm than almost any other ornithological art with the possible exception of Manetti's Ornithologia (1765-76). Bouchard was also responsible for plates in Bonelli's Hortus Romanus (Rome 1772-93), which was also published by Bouchard and Gravier.
Cf. Anker 53; cf. Nissen IVB 124; cf. Fine Birds Books (1990), p. 79; cf. Ripley and Scriber p. 37
#7311$800.00
 BOUCHARD, Maddalena
Faucon coleur de marron avec un grand bec aquilin [Chestnut-coloured Falcon with long beak] [Pl. 28]
[Pl. 28]. [Rome: Bouchard & Gravier, 1775]. Etching with engraving, coloured by hand. Very good condition apart from some overall light soiling. Image size (including text): 14 5/8 x 12 inches. Sheet size: 20 5/8 x 15 inches.
A beautiful, exuberant image from one of the rarest colour-plate bird books 'Recueil de cent-trente-trois Oiseaux des plus belle especes'.
Maddalena Bouchard may be considered by some as a primitive among bird artists; however, while her birds are not true to nature in the conventional sense, they have more exuberance and charm than almost any other ornithological art with the possible exception of Manetti's Ornithologia (1765-76). Bouchard was also responsible for plates in Bonelli's Hortus Romanus (Rome 1772-93), which was also published by Bouchard and Gravier.
Cf. Anker 53; cf. Nissen IVB 124; cf. Fine Birds Books (1990), p. 79; cf. Ripley and Scriber p. 37
#7302$800.00
 BOUCHARD, Maddalena
Faucon de diverses couleurs [Multi-coloured Falcon]; Faucon a queue anelée ou l'Epervier de la Baye de Hudson [Canadian Falcon] [Pl. 44]
[Pl. 44]. [Rome: Bouchard & Gravier, 1775]. Etching with engraving, coloured by hand. Very good condition apart from some very light foxing. Image size (including text): 14 1/2 x 11 3/4 inches. Sheet size: 20 5/8 x 15 inches.
A beautiful, exuberant image from one of the rarest colour-plate bird books 'Recueil de cent-trente-trois Oiseaux des plus belle especes'.
Maddalena Bouchard may be considered by some as a primitive among bird artists; however, while her birds are not true to nature in the conventional sense, they have more exuberance and charm than almost any other ornithological art with the possible exception of Manetti's Ornithologia (1765-76). Bouchard was also responsible for plates in Bonelli's Hortus Romanus (Rome 1772-93), which was also published by Bouchard and Gravier.
Cf. Anker 53; cf. Nissen IVB 124; cf. Fine Birds Books (1990), p. 79; cf. Ripley and Scriber p. 37
#7310$600.00
 BOUCHARD, Maddalena
Faucon Tartare, ou de Barbarie [Barbary Falcon] [Pl. 22]
[Pl. 22]. [Rome: Bouchard & Gravier, 1775]. Etching with engraving, coloured by hand. Very good condition apart from some very light foxing. Image size (including text): 14 3/4 x 12 1/8 inches. Sheet size: 20 5/8 x 15 inches.
A beautiful, exuberant image from one of the rarest colour-plate bird books 'Recueil de cent-trente-trois Oiseaux des plus belle especes'.
Maddalena Bouchard may be considered by some as a primitive among bird artists; however, while her birds are not true to nature in the conventional sense, they have more exuberance and charm than almost any other ornithological art with the possible exception of Manetti's Ornithologia (1765-76). Bouchard was also responsible for plates in Bonelli's Hortus Romanus (Rome 1772-93), which was also published by Bouchard and Gravier.
Cf. Anker 53; cf. Nissen IVB 124; cf. Fine Birds Books (1990), p. 79; cf. Ripley and Scriber p. 37
#7306$800.00
 BOUCHARD, Maddalena
Faucon vulgairem appellé Albanelle [Reddish Albanella Falcon]; Faucon appellé en Toscane Barlette [Falcon from Barletta?] [Pl. 37]
[Pl. 37]. [Rome: Bouchard & Gravier, 1775]. Etching with engraving, coloured by hand. Very good condition apart from some very light foxing and a 1" tear in the bottom margin. Image size (including text): 14 5/8 x 12 1/8 inches. Sheet size: 20 5/8 x 15 inches.
A beautiful, exuberant image from one of the rarest colour-plate bird books 'Recueil de cent-trente-trois Oiseaux des plus belle especes'.
Maddalena Bouchard may be considered by some as a primitive among bird artists; however, while her birds are not true to nature in the conventional sense, they have more exuberance and charm than almost any other ornithological art with the possible exception of Manetti's Ornithologia (1765-76). Bouchard was also responsible for plates in Bonelli's Hortus Romanus (Rome 1772-93), which was also published by Bouchard and Gravier.
Cf. Anker 53; cf. Nissen IVB 124; cf. Fine Birds Books (1990), p. 79; cf. Ripley and Scriber p. 37
#7309$600.00
 BOUCHARD, Maddalena
Le Faucon Pélerin femelle [Peregrin Falcon] [Pl. 25]
[Pl. 25]. [Rome: Bouchard & Gravier, 1775]. Etching with engraving, coloured by hand. Very good condition apart from some light foxing. Image size (including text): 15 x 12 1/4 inches. Sheet size: 20 5/8 x 15 inches.
A beautiful, exuberant image from one of the rarest colour-plate bird books 'Recueil de cent-trente-trois Oiseaux des plus belle especes'.
A fine print of a female Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus), a member of the most widespread landbird family in the world; its seventeen races covering every landmass except the high arctic and antarctic. The Peregrine Falcon is the most successful falcon in the world. Almost wherever there are falcons, the peregrine is there. Man's interference has, however, severely fragmented the distribution, and in some parts of its range the peregrine falcon has faced the threat of local distinction.
Maddalena Bouchard may be considered by some as a primitive among bird artists; however, while her birds are not true to nature in the conventional sense, they have more exuberance and charm than almost any other ornithological art with the possible exception of Manetti's Ornithologia (1765-76). Bouchard was also responsible for plates in Bonelli's Hortus Romanus (Rome 1772-93), which was also published by Bouchard and Gravier.
Cf. Anker 53; cf. Nissen IVB 124; cf. Fine Birds Books (1990), p. 79; cf. Ripley and Scriber p. 37
#5617$800.00
 BOUCHARD, Maddalena
Le Faucon Pélerin mâle [Male Peregrine Falcon] [Pl. 26]
[Pl. 26]. [Rome: Bouchard & Gravier, 1775]. Etching with engraving, coloured by hand. Very good condition. Image size (including text): 15 1/8 x 12 3/8 inches. Sheet size: 20 5/8 x 15 inches. Hand-painted French wash line mat. Gilt frame.
A beautiful, exuberant image from one of the rarest colour-plate bird books 'Recueil de cent-trente-trois Oiseaux des plus belle especes'.
Maddalena Bouchard may be considered by some as a primitive among bird artists; however, while her birds are not true to nature in the conventional sense, they have more exuberance and charm than almost any other ornithological art with the possible exception of Manetti's Ornithologia (1765-76). Bouchard was also responsible for plates in Bonelli's Hortus Romanus (Rome 1772-93), which was also published by Bouchard and Gravier.
Cf. Anker 53; cf. Nissen IVB 124; cf. Fine Birds Books (1990), p. 79; cf. Ripley and Scriber p. 37
#8278$1,000.00
 CATESBY, Mark (1683-1749)
Anas Bahamensis [White-Cheeked Pintail] [Pl. 93, vol. 1]
[Pl. 93, vol. 1]. London: (1748-1754) [Second edition]. Hand-coloured copper engraving, on laid paper. Very good condition. Sheet size: 14 1/8" x 20 1/2".
A fine image from Catesby's 'The Natural History of Carolina, Florida, and the Bahama Islands', "the most famous colour-plate book of American plant and animal life...a fundamental and original work for the study of American species." (Hunt)
Catesby's Natural History is a vibrant and original work in which each plate seems to have been created without preconception or habitual form, embodying wit and the love every true naturalist feels for nature's beings. Far from being a mere animal and plant identification book, this is a testament to the glory of nature and life.
The White-cheeked Pintail or Bahama Pintail is the northernmost subspecies of this handsome duck, which is found in Florida as well as the Bahamas, and in Trinidad and Tobago, and parts of South America.
Trained as a botanist, Catesby travelled to Virginia in 1712 and remained there for seven years, sending back to England collections of plants and seeds. With the encouragement of Sir Hans Sloane and others, Catesby returned to America in 1722 to seek materials for his 'Natural History'; he travelled extensively in Carolina, Georgia, Florida, and the Bahamas, sending back further specimens. His preface provides a lengthy account of the development of this work, including his decision to study with Joseph Goupy in order to learn to etch his plates himself to ensure accuracy and economy.
A lovely and important work, embodying the most impressive record made during the colonial period of the natural history of an American colony. The most significant work of American natural history before Audubon's Birds of America.
Cf. Anker 95; cf. Clark I:55; cf. Dunthorne 72; cf. Fine Bird Books (1990), p. 86; cf. Great Flower Books (1990), p.85; cf. Meisel III:340; cf. Nissen BBI 336, IVB 177; cf. Sabin 11509; cf. Stafleu & Cowan TL2 1057; cf. Wood p. 282; cf. Amy Meyers and Margaret Pritchard, Empire's Nature, Mark Catesby's New World Vision, Williamsburg, 1998; cf. Feduccia, Catesby's Birds of Colonial America (1985), pp. 57-8.
#19932$4,500.00
 CATESBY, Mark (1683-1749)
Anas Minor Purpureo Capite [The Buffel's Head Duck] [Pl. 95, Vol. I]
[Pl. 95, Vol. I]. London: (1748-) 1754 [Second edition]. Hand-coloured copper engraving, on laid paper. Very good condition. Sheet size: 14 x 20 1/2".
A fine image from Catesby's 'The Natural History of Carolina, Florida, and the Bahama Islands', "the most famous colour-plate book of American plant and animal life...a fundamental and original work for the study of American species." (Hunt)
Mark Catesby's Natural History is a vibrant and original work in which each plate seems to have been created without preconceptions or habitual form, embodying wit and the love every true naturalist feels for nature's beings. Far from being a mere animal identifcation book, Catesby's work is a testament to the glory of nature and life.
The Bufflehead Duck is a small, beautiful diving duck that Catesby could have seen anywhere on the southern Atlantic coast. The black head as a lovely purplish sheen mentioned in the Latin title. Bufflehead is short for Buffalo Head, in reference to what appears to be his disproportionately large head.
Trained as a botanist, Catesby travelled to Virginia in 1712 and remained there for seven years, sending back to England collections of plants and seeds. With the encouragement of Sir Hans Sloane and others, Catesby returned to America in 1722 to seek materials for a 'Natural History'; he travelled extensively in the Carolinas, Georgia, and the Bahamas, collecting specimens and making drawings from life. His preface provides a lengthy account of the development of this work, including his decision to study with Joseph Goupy in order to learn to etch his plates himself to ensure accuracy and economy.
Cf. Anker 95; cf. Clark I:55; cf. Dunthorne 72; cf. Fine Bird Books (1990), p. 86; cf. Great Flower Books (1990), p.85; cf. Meisel III:340; cf. Nissen BBI 336, IVB 177; cf. Sabin 11509; cf. Stafleu & Cowan TL2 1057; cf. Wood p. 282; cf. Amy Meyers and Margaret Pritchard, Empire's Nature, Mark Catesby's New World Vision, Williamsburg, 1998; cf. Feduccia, Catesby's Birds of Colonial America (1985), pp. 57-8.
#19933$2,500.00
 CATESBY, Mark (1683-1749)
Bahama Finch [Pl. 42, Vol. I]
[Pl. 42, Vol. I ]. London: printed for Benjamin White, 1771 [Third edition]. Hand-coloured copper engraving, on fine laid paper. Very good condition. Browning in extreme right margin well outside the platemark . Plate mark: 14 x 10 3/8 inches. Sheet size: 20 1/8 x 14 1/8 inches.
A fine image from Catesby's 'The Natural History of Carolina, Florida, and the Bahama Islands', "the most famous colour-plate book of American plant and animal life...a fundamental and original work for the study of American species" (Hunt).
A native of the Greater Antilles and Bahama Islands, the Bahama Finch or stripe-headed tanager is pictured in this stunning print among the leaves, flowers, and fruit of a broad leafed buiacium or boxwood tree, which is also indigenous to the Bahama Islands. This remarkable bird inhabits gardens and thick bushes and has a distinct appearance of a black head adorned with white stripes and a yellowish orange underside.
Trained as a botanist, Catesby travelled to Virginia in 1712 and remained there for seven years, sending back to England collections of plants and seeds. With the encouragement of Sir Hans Sloane and others, Catesby returned to America in 1722 to seek materials for his 'Natural History'; he travelled extensively in Carolina, Georgia, Florida, and the Bahamas, sending back further specimens. His preface provides a lengthy account of the development of this work, including his decision to study with Joseph Goupy in order to learn to etch his plates himself to ensure accuracy and economy.
A lovely and important work, embodying the most impressive record made during the colonial period of the natural history of an American colony. The most significant work of American natural history before Audubon's Birds of America.
Cf. Anker 95; cf. Clark I:55; cf. Dunthorne 72; cf. Fine Bird Books (1990), p. 86; cf. Great Flower Books (1990), p.85; cf. Meisel III:340; cf. Nissen BBI 336, IVB 177; cf. Sabin 11509; cf. Stafleu & Cowan TL2 1057; cf. Wood p. 282; cf. Amy Meyers and Margaret Pritchard, Empire's Nature, Mark Catesby's New World Vision, Williamsburg, 1998; cf. Feduccia, Catesby's Birds of Colonial America (1985), p. 116.
#8013$1,000.00
 CATESBY, Mark (1683-1749)
Blue-Wing Shoveler [Pl. 96, Vol. I]
[Pl. 96, Vol. I]. London: printed for Benjamin White, 1771 [Third edition]. Hand-coloured copper engraving, on fine laid paper. Very good condition. Uneven left edge. Maringal rippling in right margin. Plate mark: 13 3/4 x 10 1/4 inches. Sheet size: 20 x 14 inches.
A fine image from Catesby's "The Natural History of Carolina, Florida, and the Bahama Islands," "the most famous colour-plate book of American plant and animal life...a fundamental and original work for the study of American species" (Hunt).
Also known as the spoonbill, the northern shoveler is commonly found in the Virginia and the Carolinas during the winter season. The shape of their distinct spatula-like bill enables them to feed on small aquatic animals and plants both on top of and below the water's surface. In his accompanying text, Catesby observes that "[i]ts bill is three inches long, coal black (though this is of a reddish brown, spotted with black) much broader toward the tip than at the base, excavated like a buckler, of a round circumference. At the end it hath a small crooked hook or nail; each mandible is pectinated or toothed like a comb, with rays or thin plates inserted mutually one into another, when the bill is shut..." (Feduccia, Catesby's Birds of Colonial America (1985), p. 55-6)
Trained as a botanist, Catesby travelled to Virginia in 1712 and remained there for seven years, sending back to England collections of plants and seeds. With the encouragement of Sir Hans Sloane and others, Catesby returned to America in 1722 to seek materials for his "Natural History"; he travelled extensively in the Carolinas, Georgia, Florida, and the Bahamas, sending back further specimens. His preface provides a lengthy account of the development of this work, including his decision to study with Joseph Goupy in order to learn to etch his plates himself, to ensure accuracy and economy.
A lovely and important work, embodying the most impressive record made during the colonial period of the natural history of an American colony. The most significant work of American natural history before Audubon's "The Birds of America".
Cf. Anker 95; cf. Clark I:55; cf. Dunthorne 72; cf. Fine Bird Books (1990), p. 86; cf. Great Flower Books (1990), p.85; cf. Meisel III:340; cf. Nissen BBI 336, IVB 177; cf. Sabin 11509; cf. Stafleu & Cowan TL2 1057; cf. Wood, p. 282; cf. Amy Meyers and Margaret Pritchard, Empire's Nature, Mark Catesby's New World Vision, Williamsburg, 1998.
#8037$1,750.00
 CATESBY, Mark (1683-1749)
Chamaedaphne (Mountain Laurel) with Pitch Apple [Pl. 98, Vol. II]
[Pl. 98, Vol. II]. London: printed for Benjamin White, 1771 [Third edition]. Hand-coloured copper engraving, on fine laid paper. Very good condition. Plate mark: 13 3/4 x 10 1/4 inches. Sheet size: 20 1/4 x 13 7/8 inches.
A fine image from Catesby's 'The Natural History of Carolina, Florida, and the Bahama Islands', "the most famous colour-plate book of American plant and animal life...a fundamental and original work for the study of American species" (Hunt).
The mountain laurel is a poisonous, broad-leaved evergreen shrub native to eastern North America. It is commonly found in mountainous forests and rocky slopes and is the state flower of Connecticut and Pennsylvania. In this stunning print, the mountain laurel is pictured with the pitch apple, otherwise known as the autograph tree, which can be found in Florida and the West Indies.
Trained as a botanist, Catesby travelled to Virginia in 1712 and remained there for seven years, sending back to England collections of plants and seeds. With the encouragement of Sir Hans Sloane and others, Catesby returned to America in 1722 to seek materials for his 'Natural History'; he travelled extensively in Carolina, Georgia, Florida, and the Bahamas, sending back further specimens. His preface provides a lengthy account of the development of this work, including his decision to study with Joseph Goupy in order to learn to etch his plates himself to ensure accuracy and economy.
A lovely and important work, embodying the most impressive record made during the colonial period of the natural history of an American colony. The most significant work of American natural history before Audubon's Birds of America.
Cf. Anker 95; cf. Clark I:55; cf. Dunthorne 72; cf. Fine Bird Books (1990), p. 86; cf. Great Flower Books (1990), p.85; cf. Meisel III:340; cf. Nissen BBI 336, IVB 177; cf. Sabin 11509; cf. Stafleu & Cowan TL2 1057; cf. Wood p. 282; cf. Amy Meyers and Margaret Pritchard, Empire's Nature, Mark Catesby's New World Vision, Williamsburg, 1998.
#8104$800.00
 CATESBY, Mark (1683-1749)
Grey Fox Squirrel (Eastern Gray Squirrel) with Bahaman Orchid [Pl. 74, Vol. II]
[Pl. 74, Vol. II]. London: printed for Benjamin White, 1771 [Third edition]. Hand-coloured copper engraving, on fine laid paper. Very good condition apart from some very light soiling and mild rippling in the margins. Bottom of sheet slightly trimmed. Plate mark: approximately 10 x 13 3/4 inches. Sheet size: approximately 13 7/8 x 20 inches.
A fine image from Catesby's "The Natural History of Carolina, Florida, and the Bahama Islands," "the most famous colour-plate book of American plant and animal life...a fundamental and original work for the study of American species" (Hunt).
The nut-eating eastern gray squirrel primarily inhabits the hardwood forests of the eastern United States and Canada although it can also be found in Texas, California, and several mid-western states. Its nests are constructed of leaves and are usually built in the hollows and elevated crevices of trees.
Trained as a botanist, Catesby travelled to Virginia in 1712 and remained there for seven years, sending back to England collections of plants and seeds. With the encouragement of Sir Hans Sloane and others, Catesby returned to America in 1722 to seek materials for his "Natural History"; he travelled extensively in the Carolinas, Georgia, Florida, and the Bahamas, sending back further specimens. His preface provides a lengthy account of the development of this work, including his decision to study with Joseph Goupy in order to learn to etch his plates himself, to ensure accuracy and economy.
A lovely and important work, embodying the most impressive record made during the colonial period of the natural history of an American colony. The most significant work of American natural history before Audubon's "The Birds of America".
Cf. Anker 95; cf. Clark I:55; cf. Dunthorne 72; cf. Fine Bird Books (1990), p. 86; cf. Great Flower Books (1990), p.85; cf. Meisel III:340; cf. Nissen BBI 336, IVB 177; cf. Sabin 11509; cf. Stafleu & Cowan TL2 1057; cf. Wood, p. 282; cf. Amy Meyers and Margaret Pritchard, Empire's Nature, Mark Catesby's New World Vision, Williamsburg, 1998.
#14569$1,750.00
 CATESBY, Mark (1683-1749)
Lane Snapper & Tobacco-Pipe Fish [Pl. 17, Vol. II]
[Pl. 17, Vol. II]. London: printed for Benjamin White, 1771 [Third edition]. Hand-coloured copper engraving, on fine laid paper. Very good condition
. Plate mark: 9 3/8 x 12 7/8 inches. Sheet size: 13 7/8 x 20 1/8 inches.
A fine image from Catesby's 'The Natural History of Carolina, Florida, and the Bahama Islands', "the most famous colour-plate book of American plant and animal life...a fundamental and original work for the study of American species" (Hunt).
The lane snapper is a short compact fish that can be found in the Western Atlantic, including the Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico. Although they frequent various types of habitats, they primarily congregate around coral reefs and sandy areas replete with vegetation. Otherwise known as the cornet or trumpet fish, the tobacco-pipe fish populates both the Eastern and Western Atlantic, from southern Canada to the South American coasts. It is particularly common in the West Indies and is an easily recognizable species because of its singular appearance of a slim, tubular body and elongated snout.
Trained as a botanist, Catesby travelled to Virginia in 1712 and remained there for seven years, sending back to England collections of plants and seeds. With the encouragement of Sir Hans Sloane and others, Catesby returned to America in 1722 to seek materials for his 'Natural History'; he travelled extensively in Carolina, Georgia, Florida, and the Bahamas, sending back further specimens. His preface provides a lengthy account of the development of this work, including his decision to study with Joseph Goupy in order to learn to etch his plates himself to ensure accuracy and economy.
A lovely and important work, embodying the most impressive record made during the colonial period of the natural history of an American colony. The most significant work of American natural history before Audubon's Birds of America.
Cf. Anker 95; cf. Clark I:55; cf. Dunthorne 72; cf. Fine Bird Books (1990), p. 86; cf. Great Flower Books (1990), p.85; cf. Meisel III:340; cf. Nissen BBI 336, IVB 177; cf. Sabin 11509; cf. Stafleu & Cowan TL2 1057; cf. Wood p. 282; cf. Amy Meyers and Margaret Pritchard, Empire's Nature, Mark Catesby's New World Vision, Williamsburg, 1998.
#8010$500.00
 CATESBY, Mark (1683-1749)
Laughing Gull [Pl. 89, Vol. I]
[Pl. 89, Vol. I]. London: printed for Benjamin White, 1771 [Third edition]. Hand-coloured copper engraving, on laid paper. Very good condition. Bottom margin trimmed, about 2" remaining, uneven. Plate mark: 10 3/8 x 13 1/2 inches. Sheet size: 13 1/4 x 18 5/8 inches.
A fine image from Catesby's "The Natural History of Carolina, Florida, and the Bahama Islands," "the most famous colour-plate book of American plant and animal life...a fundamental and original work for the study of American species" (Hunt).
A small distinctive coastal gull, laughing gulls, Catesby explains, "are numerous in most of the Bahama Islands. The noise they make has some resemblance to laughing, from which they seem to take their name...." (Feduccia, Catesby's Birds of Colonial America (1985), p. 45). These remarkable birds subsist on fish, crustaceans, and insects inhabit lake and ocean shores, and marshes, where they build elaborate nests in colonies.
Trained as a botanist, Catesby travelled to Virginia in 1712 and remained there for seven years, sending back to England collections of plants and seeds. With the encouragement of Sir Hans Sloane and others, Catesby returned to America in 1722 to seek materials for his "Natural History"; he travelled extensively in the Carolinas, Georgia, Florida, and the Bahamas, sending back further specimens. His preface provides a lengthy account of the development of this work, including his decision to study with Joseph Goupy in order to learn to etch his plates himself, to ensure accuracy and economy.
A lovely and important work, embodying the most impressive record made during the colonial period of the natural history of an American colony. The most significant work of American natural history before Audubon's "The Birds of America".
Cf. Anker 95; cf. Clark I:55; cf. Dunthorne 72; cf. Fine Bird Books (1990), p. 86; cf. Great Flower Books (1990), p.85; cf. Meisel III:340; cf. Nissen BBI 336, IVB 177; cf. Sabin 11509; cf. Stafleu & Cowan TL2 1057; cf. Wood, p. 282; cf. Amy Meyers and Margaret Pritchard, Empire's Nature, Mark Catesby's New World Vision, Williamsburg, 1998.
#8035$1,500.00
 CATESBY, Mark (1683-1749)
Mangrove Snapper [Pl. 9, Vol. II]
[Pl. 9, Vol. II]. London: printed for Benjamin White, 1771 [Third edition]. Hand-coloured copper engraving, on fine laid paper. Very good condition apart from some light marginal soiling. Plate mark: 10 1/2 x 14 1/4 inches. Sheet size: 13 5/8 x 20 1/8 inches.
A fine image from Catesby's 'The Natural History of Carolina, Florida, and the Bahama Islands', "the most famous colour-plate book of American plant and animal life...a fundamental and original work for the study of American species" (Hunt).
The mangrove snapper is an inhabitant of the coastal and offshore waters of the Western Atlantic, including the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico. Its name derives from the sharp canine teeth protruding from its jaws.
Trained as a botanist, Catesby travelled to Virginia in 1712 and remained there for seven years, sending back to England collections of plants and seeds. With the encouragement of Sir Hans Sloane and others, Catesby returned to America in 1722 to seek materials for his 'Natural History'; he travelled extensively in Carolina, Georgia, Florida, and the Bahamas, sending back further specimens. His preface provides a lengthy account of the development of this work, including his decision to study with Joseph Goupy in order to learn to etch his plates himself to ensure accuracy and economy.
A lovely and important work, embodying the most impressive record made during the colonial period of the natural history of the southern American colonies. The most significant work of American natural history before Audubon's Birds of America.
Cf. Anker 95; cf. Clark I:55; cf. Dunthorne 72; cf. Fine Bird Books (1990), p. 86; cf. Great Flower Books (1990), p.85; cf. Meisel III:340; cf. Nissen BBI 336, IVB 177; cf. Sabin 11509; cf. Stafleu & Cowan TL2 1057; cf. Wood p. 282; cf. Amy Meyers and Margaret Pritchard, Empire's Nature, Mark Catesby's New World Vision, Williamsburg, 1998
#8008$600.00
 CATESBY, Mark (1683-1749)
Margate Fish & Sea Sparrow-Hawk [Pl. 2, Vol. II]
[Pl. 2, Vol. II]. London: printed for Benjamin White, 1771 [Third edition]. Hand-coloured copper engraving, on fine laid paper. Very good condition . Plate mark: 10 3/8 x 14 inches. Sheet size: 13 3/4 x 20 1/8 inches.
A fine image from Catesby's 'The Natural History of Carolina, Florida, and the Bahama Islands', "the most famous colour-plate book of American plant and animal life...a fundamental and original work for the study of American species" (Hunt).
The white margate is commonly found in both pairs and schools in the waters of the Western Atlantic and throughout the West Indies. It subsists on small fish, crustaceans and other benthic invertebrates. Also known as the inshore lizardfish because of its elongated tubular appearance, triangular snout, and wide mouth, the sea sparrow-hawk is similarly found in the Western Atlantic and the northern Gulf of Mexico.
Trained as a botanist, Catesby travelled to Virginia in 1712 and remained there for seven years, sending back to England collections of plants and seeds. With the encouragement of Sir Hans Sloane and others, Catesby returned to America in 1722 to seek materials for his 'Natural History'; he travelled extensively in Carolina, Georgia, Florida, and the Bahamas, sending back further specimens. His preface provides a lengthy account of the development of this work, including his decision to study with Joseph Goupy in order to learn to etch his plates himself to ensure accuracy and economy.
A lovely and important work, embodying the most impressive record made during the colonial period of the natural history of an American colony. The most significant work of American natural history before Audubon's Birds of America.
Cf. Anker 95; cf. Clark I:55; cf. Dunthorne 72; cf. Fine Bird Books (1990), p. 86; cf. Great Flower Books (1990), p.85; cf. Meisel III:340; cf. Nissen BBI 336, IVB 177; cf. Sabin 11509; cf. Stafleu & Cowan TL2 1057; cf. Wood p. 282; cf. Amy Meyers and Margaret Pritchard, Empire's Nature, Mark Catesby's New World Vision, Williamsburg, 1998
#8009$600.00
 CATESBY, Mark (1683-1749)
Mergus [Hooded Merganser] [Pl. 94, Vol. I]
[Pl. 94, Vol. I]. London: (1748-) 1754 [Second edition]. Hand-coloured copper engraving, on fine laid paper. Very good condition apart from a few creases at the edge of the top margin where the page was bound in. Plate mark: 10 3/8 x 13 3/4 inches. Sheet size: 13 15/16 x 19 7/8 inches.
A fine image from Catesby's 'The Natural History of Carolina, Florida, and the Bahama Islands', "the most famous colour-plate book of American plant and animal life...a fundamental and original work for the study of American species." (Hunt)
The Hooded Merganser is primarily an inhabitant of wooded lakes, millponds, and rivers. Catesby described this beautiful bird as "somewhat less than a common tame duck; the eyes are yellow, the bill is black and narrow; the upper mandible hooked at the end, and both mandibles serrated...The head is crowned with a very larger circular crest, or tuft of feathers; the middle of which, on each side, is white and bordered round with black, which black extends to and covers the throat and neck. The breast and belly are white. The quill feathers of the wings are brown; just above which are some smaller feathers, whose exterior vanes are edged with white, with a little white intermixed in them, as in some of the other feathers likewise..."
Trained as a botanist, Catesby travelled to Virginia in 1712 and remained there for seven years, sending back to England collections of plants and seeds. With the encouragement of Sir Hans Sloane and others, Catesby returned to America in 1722 to seek materials for his 'Natural History'; he travelled extensively in Carolina, Georgia, Florida, and the Bahamas, sending back further specimens. His preface provides a lengthy account of the development of this work, including his decision to study with Joseph Goupy in order to learn to etch his plates himself to ensure accuracy and economy.
A lovely and important work, embodying the most impressive record made during the colonial period of the natural history of an American colony. The most significant work of American natural history before Audubon's Birds of America.
Cf. Anker 95; cf. Clark I:55; cf. Dunthorne 72; cf. Fine Bird Books (1990), p. 86; cf. Great Flower Books (1990), p.85; cf. Meisel III:340; cf. Nissen BBI 336, IVB 177; cf. Sabin 11509; cf. Stafleu & Cowan TL2 1057; cf. Wood p. 282; cf. Amy Meyers and Margaret Pritchard, Empire's Nature, Mark Catesby's New World Vision, Williamsburg, 1998; cf. Feduccia, Catesby's Birds of Colonial America (1985), pp. 57-8.
#14541$3,000.00
 CATESBY, Mark (1683-1749)
Mutton Fish [Pl. 25, Vol. II]
[Pl. 25, Vol. II]. London: printed for Benjamin White, 1771 [Third edition]. Hand-coloured copper engraving, on fine laid paper. Very good condition. Plate mark: 10 3/4 x 13 3/4 inches. Sheet size: 13 3/4 x 20 1/8 inches.
A fine image from Catesby's 'The Natural History of Carolina, Florida, and the Bahama Islands', "the most famous colour-plate book of American plant and animal life...a fundamental and original work for the study of American species" (Hunt).
The mutton snapper is commonly found in the Western Atlantic, between Massachusetts and as far south as Brazil. They are, however, most populous in the Bahamas, Antilles, and southern Florida, and they primarily inhabit coral reefs, continental shelves, and rock bottoms.
Trained as a botanist, Catesby travelled to Virginia in 1712 and remained there for seven years, sending back to England collections of plants and seeds. With the encouragement of Sir Hans Sloane and others, Catesby returned to America in 1722 to seek materials for his 'Natural History'; he travelled extensively in Carolina, Georgia, Florida, and the Bahamas, sending back further specimens. His preface provides a lengthy account of the development of this work, including his decision to study with Joseph Goupy in order to learn to etch his plates himself to ensure accuracy and economy.
A lovely and important work, embodying the most impressive record made during the colonial period of the natural history of an American colony. The most significant work of American natural history before Audubon's Birds of America.
Cf. Anker 95; cf. Clark I:55; cf. Dunthorne 72; cf. Fine Bird Books (1990), p. 86; cf. Great Flower Books (1990), p.85; cf. Meisel III:340; cf. Nissen BBI 336, IVB 177; cf. Sabin 11509; cf. Stafleu & Cowan TL2 1057; cf. Wood p. 282; cf. Amy Meyers and Margaret Pritchard, Empire's Nature, Mark Catesby's New World Vision, Williamsburg, 1998
#8024$750.00
 CATESBY, Mark (1683-1749)
Oyster Catcher with Frutex Bahamensis (Black Mangrove) [Pl. 85, Vol. I]
[Pl. 85, Vol. I]. London: printed for Benjamin White, 1771 [Third edition]. Hand-coloured copper engraving, on fine laid paper. Good condition apart from some browning due to mild offsetting and an uneven bottom edge. Plate mark: 10 3/8 x 14 inches. Sheet size: 14 1/8 x 20 inches.
A fine image from Catesby's "The Natural History of Carolina, Florida, and the Bahama Islands," "the most famous colour-plate book of American plant and animal life...a fundamental and original work for the study of American species" (Hunt).
Pictured alongside the black mangrove plant, the American oystercatcher is a distinctive, large shorebird that is commonly found along the southern Atlantic coast. They primarily subsist on bivalves, particularly oysters, "nature," explains Catesby, "having not only formed their bills suitable to the work, but armed the feet and legs for a defense against the sharp edges of the oysters. The hens differ from the cocks in not having the red circle around their eyes, and their bellies are of a more dirty white than in the cocks..." (Feduccia, Catesby's Birds of Colonial America (1985), p. 42)
Trained as a botanist, Catesby travelled to Virginia in 1712 and remained there for seven years, sending back to England collections of plants and seeds. With the encouragement of Sir Hans Sloane and others, Catesby returned to America in 1722 to seek materials for his "Natural History"; he travelled extensively in the Carolinas, Georgia, Florida, and the Bahamas, sending back further specimens. His preface provides a lengthy account of the development of this work, including his decision to study with Joseph Goupy in order to learn to etch his plates himself, to ensure accuracy and economy.
A lovely and important work, embodying the most impressive record made during the colonial period of the natural history of an American colony. The most significant work of American natural history before Audubon's "The Birds of America".
Cf. Anker 95; cf. Clark I:55; cf. Dunthorne 72; cf. Fine Bird Books (1990), p. 86; cf. Great Flower Books (1990), p.85; cf. Meisel III:340; cf. Nissen BBI 336, IVB 177; cf. Sabin 11509; cf. Stafleu & Cowan TL2 1057; cf. Wood, p. 282; cf. Amy Meyers and Margaret Pritchard, Empire's Nature, Mark Catesby's New World Vision, Williamsburg, 1998; cf. Feduccia, Catesby's Birds of Colonial America, p. 42-3.
#8043$1,500.00
 CATESBY, Mark (1683-1749)
Pied-Bill Dobchick (Pied-Bill Grebe) [Pl. 91, Vol. I]
[Pl. 91, Vol. I]. London: printed for Benjamin White, 1771 [Third edition]. Hand-coloured copper engraving, on fine laid paper. Very good condition apart from some light soiling and minor foxing. Plate mark: 10 3/8 x 12 3/8 inches. Sheet size: 13 7/8 x 19 7/8 inches.
A fine image from Catesby's 'The Natural History of Carolina, Florida, and the Bahama Islands', "the most famous colour-plate book of American plant and animal life...a fundamental and original work for the study of American species" (Hunt)
Found all over the world, the duck-like pied-bill grebes are also commonly known as dabchicks or hell-divers. They are diving birds, which can be distinguished from ducks by the webbing on their individual toes. The pied-billed grebe is one of three species of grebes that inhabit the coastal areas of the Carolinas and are so-called because of the black ring that appears around their bills during the summer months. They are primarily found in marshes, lakes and ponds.
Trained as a botanist, Catesby travelled to Virginia in 1712 and remained there for seven years, sending back to England collections of plants and seeds. With the encouragement of Sir Hans Sloane and others, Catesby returned to America in 1722 to seek materials for his 'Natural History'; he travelled extensively in Carolina, Georgia, Florida, and the Bahamas, sending back further specimens. His preface provides a lengthy account of the development of this work, including his decision to study with Joseph Goupy in order to learn to etch his plates himself to ensure accuracy and economy.
A lovely and important work, embodying the most impressive record made during the colonial period of the natural history of an American colony. The most significant work of American natural history before Audubon's Birds of America.
Cf. Anker 95; cf. Clark I:55; cf. Dunthorne 72; cf. Fine Bird Books (1990), p. 86; cf. Great Flower Books (1990), p.85; cf. Meisel III:340; cf. Nissen BBI 336, IVB 177; cf. Sabin 11509; cf. Stafleu & Cowan TL2 1057; cf. Wood p. 282; cf. Amy Meyers and Margaret Pritchard, Empire's Nature, Mark Catesby's New World Vision, Williamsburg, 1998; cf. Feduccia, Catesby's Birds of Colonial America (1985), p. 17.
#8030$1,500.00
 CATESBY, Mark (1683-1749)
Pigeon Hawk [Pl. 3, Vol. I]
[Pl. 3, Vol. I]. London: printed for Benjamin White, 1771 [Third edition]. Hand-coloured copper engraving, on fine laid paper. Very good condition apart from slight offsetting. Plate mark: 10 1/4 x 14 1/8 inches. Sheet size: 13 5/8 x 20 7/8 inches.
A fine image from Catesby's 'The Natural History of Carolina, Florida, and the Bahama Islands', "the most famous colour-plate book of American plant and animal life...a fundamental and original work for the study of American species" (Hunt)
A small, nimble falcon resembling the peregrine falcon in miniature, the pigeon-hawk is one of the rarest types of falcon. It primarily subsists on small birds and insects and today does not commonly frequent the regions in which Catesby traveled. In his accompanying text, Catesby describes this remarkable bird as "a very swift and bold hawk, preying on pigeons and wild turkeys while they are young." (Feduccia, Catesby's Birds of Colonial America (1985), p. 36)
Trained as a botanist, Catesby travelled to Virginia in 1712 and remained there for seven years, sending back to England collections of plants and seeds. With the encouragement of Sir Hans Sloane and others, Catesby returned to America in 1722 to seek materials for his 'Natural History'; he travelled extensively in Carolina, Georgia, Florida, and the Bahamas, sending back further specimens. His preface provides a lengthy account of the development of this work, including his decision to study with Joseph Goupy in order to learn to etch his plates himself to ensure accuracy and economy.
A lovely and important work, embodying the most impressive record made during the colonial period of the natural history of an American colony. The most significant work of American natural history before Audubon's Birds of America.
Cf. Anker 95; cf. Clark I:55; cf. Dunthorne 72; cf. Fine Bird Books (1990), p. 86; cf. Great Flower Books (1990), p.85; cf. Meisel III:340; cf. Nissen BBI 336, IVB 177; cf. Sabin 11509; cf. Stafleu & Cowan TL2 1057; cf. Wood p. 282; cf. Amy Meyers and Margaret Pritchard, Empire's Nature, Mark Catesby's New World Vision, Williamsburg, 1998.
#8014$900.00
 CATESBY, Mark (1683-1749)
Pilchard with Ti-Ti [Pl. 24, Vol. II]
[Pl. 24, Vol. II]. London: printed for Benjamin White, 1771 [Third edition]. Hand-coloured copper engraving, on fine laid paper. Very good condition . Plate mark: 14 x 10 1/8 inches. Sheet size: 20 1/8 x 13 7/8 inches.
A fine image from Catesby's "The Natural History of Carolina, Florida, and the Bahama Islands," "the most famous colour-plate book of American plant and animal life...a fundamental and original work for the study of American species." (Hunt).
Also known as the red-ear herring and red-ear sardine, the pilchard can commonly be found in the coral reefs, coastal waters, and shorelines of Florida, Bermuda, the Caribbean, and Guianas. This slender fish is pictured in this stunning print with the ti-ti plant of the Bahamas, which also grows behind the black mangroves of the Florida Everglades.
Trained as a botanist, Catesby travelled to Virginia in 1712 and remained there for seven years, sending back to England collections of plants and seeds. With the encouragement of Sir Hans Sloane and others, Catesby returned to America in 1722 to seek materials for his "Natural History". He travelled extensively in the Carolinas, Georgia, Florida, and the Bahamas, sending back further specimens. His preface provides a lengthy account of the development of this work, including his decision to study with Joseph Goupy in order to learn to etch his plates himself, to ensure accuracy and economy.
A lovely and important work, embodying the most impressive record made during the colonial period of the natural history of an American colony. The most significant work of American natural history before Audubon's The Birds of America.
Cf. Anker 95; cf. Clark I:55; cf. Dunthorne 72; cf. Fine Bird Books (1990), p. 86; cf. Great Flower Books (1990), p.85; cf. Meisel III:340; cf. Nissen BBI 336, IVB 177; cf. Sabin 11509; cf. Stafleu & Cowan TL2 1057; cf. Wood p. 282; cf. Amy Meyers and Margaret Pritchard, Empire's Nature, Mark Catesby's New World Vision, Williamsburg, 1998.
#8031$800.00
 CATESBY, Mark (1683-1749)
[Pink Flamingo head] Caput Phaenicopteri.The Bill of the Flamingo in Its Full Dimensions [Pl. 74, Vol. I]
[Pl. 74, Vol. I]. London: printed for Benjamin White, 1771 [Third edition]. Hand-coloured copper engraving, on fine laid paper. Very good condition. Plate mark: 14 1/8 x 10 1/8 inches. Sheet size: 20 x 14 inches.
A fine image from Catesby's 'The Natural History of Carolina, Florida, and the Bahama Islands', "the most famous colour-plate book of American plant and animal life...a fundamental and original work for the study of American species" (Hunt).
"These birds," Catesby observes, "make their nests on hillocks in shallow water; on which they sit with their legs extended down, like a man sitting on a stool. They breed on the coasts of Cuba and Bahama Islands, and frequent salt water only...This bird resembles the heron in shape, excepting the bill." (Feduccia, Catesby's Birds of Colonial America (1985), p. 48) Catesby executed this particular plate of a flamingo's head set against a piece of gorgonian coral in order to give a detailed, close-up view of the flamingo's unique bill. With its perfectly aligned, downwardly angled upper and lower mandibles, the latter of which is keel-shaped and the former thin and flat, and the tooth like ridges adorning its exterior, the flamingo's singular bill is finely adapted for filter feeding.
Trained as a botanist, Catesby travelled to Virginia in 1712 and remained there for seven years, sending back to England collections of plants and seeds. With the encouragement of Sir Hans Sloane and others, Catesby returned to America in 1722 to seek materials for his 'Natural History'; he travelled extensively in Carolina, Georgia, Florida, and the Bahamas, sending back further specimens. His preface provides a lengthy account of the development of this work, including his decision to study with Joseph Goupy in order to learn to etch his plates himself to ensure accuracy and economy.
A lovely and important work, embodying the most impressive record made during the colonial period of the natural history of an American colony. The most significant work of American natural history before Audubon's Birds of America.
Cf. Anker 95; cf. Clark I:55; cf. Dunthorne 72; cf. Fine Bird Books (1990), p. 86; cf. Great Flower Books (1990), p.85; cf. Meisel III:340; cf. Nissen BBI 336, IVB 177; cf. Sabin 11509; cf. Stafleu & Cowan TL2 1057; cf. Wood p. 282; cf. Amy Meyers and Margaret Pritchard, Empire's Nature, Mark Catesby's New World Vision, Williamsburg, 1998.
#14548$2,000.00
 CATESBY, Mark (1683-1749)
Plumeria Flore Roseo (Red Frangipanni) [Pl. 92, Vol. II]
[Pl. 92, Vol. II]. London: printed for Benjamin White, 1771 [Third edition]. Hand-coloured copper engraving, on fine laid paper. Very good condition. Plate mark: 13 7/8 x 10 1/8 inches. Sheet size: 20 1/8 x 13 5/8 inches.
A fine image from Catesby's 'The Natural History of Carolina, Florida, and the Bahama Islands', "the most famous colour-plate book of American plant and animal life...a fundamental and original work for the study of American species" (Hunt).
Named after Charles Plumier, the seventeenth-century botanist who studied numerous species of tropical plants, red frangipani (Plumeria rubra) is a small tree indigenous to Central America. It can also be found in the tropical climates of the United States and is renowned for its powerfully fragrant flowers.
Trained as a botanist, Catesby travelled to Virginia in 1712 and remained there for seven years, sending back to England collections of plants and seeds. With the encouragement of Sir Hans Sloane and others, Catesby returned to America in 1722 to seek materials for his 'Natural History'; he travelled extensively in Carolina, Georgia, Florida, and the Bahamas, sending back further specimens. His preface provides a lengthy account of the development of this work, including his decision to study with Joseph Goupy in order to learn to etch his plates himself to ensure accuracy and economy.
A lovely and important work, embodying the most impressive record made during the colonial period of the natural history of an American colony. The most significant work of American natural history before Audubon's Birds of America.
Cf. Anker 95; cf. Clark I:55; cf. Dunthorne 72; cf. Fine Bird Books (1990), p. 86; cf. Great Flower Books (1990), p.85; cf. Meisel III:340; cf. Nissen BBI 336, IVB 177; cf. Sabin 11509; cf. Stafleu & Cowan TL2 1057; cf. Wood p. 282; cf. Amy Meyers and Margaret Pritchard, Empire's Nature, Mark Catesby's New World Vision, Williamsburg, 1998.
#8020$900.00
 CATESBY, Mark (1683-1749)
Pole Cat (Striped Skunk) with Day Flower [Pl. 62, Vol. II]
[Pl. 62, Vol. II]. London: printed for Benjamin White, 1771 [Third edition]. Hand-coloured copper engraving, on fine laid paper. Very good condition apart from some mild rippling in the bottom margin. Plate mark: 10 3/8 x 13 7/8 inches. Sheet size: 14 1/8 x 20 1/8 inches.
A fine image from Catesby's 'The Natural History of Carolina, Florida, and the Bahama Islands', "the most famous colour-plate book of American plant and animal life...a fundamental and original work for the study of American species" (Hunt)
Pictured here with a Virginia dayflower, a native of Florida, the polecat or striped skunk is commonly found throughout the United States and southern Canada. It primarily inhabits woodlands, desert, and grassy plains and subsists on vegetables, insects, and small mammals. Skunks are notorious for the noxious musk they release when threatened and are easily recognizable due to their distinct black fur adorned with white stripes.
Trained as a botanist, Catesby travelled to Virginia in 1712 and remained there for seven years, sending back to England collections of plants and seeds. With the encouragement of Sir Hans Sloane and others, Catesby returned to America in 1722 to seek materials for his 'Natural History'; he travelled extensively in Carolina, Georgia, Florida, and the Bahamas, sending back further specimens. His preface provides a lengthy account of the development of this work, including his decision to study with Joseph Goupy in order to learn to etch his plates himself to ensure accuracy and economy.
A lovely and important work, embodying the most impressive record made during the colonial period of the natural history of an American colony. The most significant work of American natural history before Audubon's Birds of America.
Cf. Anker 95; cf. Clark I:55; cf. Dunthorne 72; cf. Fine Bird Books (1990), p. 86; cf. Great Flower Books (1990), p.85; cf. Meisel III:340; cf. Nissen BBI 336, IVB 177; cf. Sabin 11509; cf. Stafleu & Cowan TL2 1057; cf. Wood p. 282; cf. Amy Meyers and Margaret Pritchard, Empire's Nature, Mark Catesby's New World Vision, Williamsburg, 1998.
#14544$1,400.00
 CATESBY, Mark (1683-1749)
[The Cat Bird] Muscicapa vertice nigro [Pl. 66, Vol. I]
[Pl. 66, Vol. I]. London: printed for Benjamin White, 1771 [Third edition]. Hand-coloured copper engraving, on fine laid paper. Very good condition. Plate mark: 14 x 10 inches. Sheet size: 20 1/8 x 13 7/8 inches.
A fine image from Catesby's 'The Natural History of Carolina, Florida, and the Bahama Islands', "the most famous colour-plate book of American plant and animal life...a fundamental and original work for the study of American species" (Hunt)
Part of the family of mimic thrushes that includes the brown thrasher and mockingbird, the catbird is commonly found in southern Canada as well as the central, eastern and southern regions of the United States. Catesby observes in his accompanying text that "[t]his bird is not seen on lofty trees; but frequents bushes and thickets; and feeds on insects. It has but one note, which resembles the mewing of a cat; and which has given it its name. It lays a blue egg, and retires from Virginia in winter." (Feduccia, Catesby's Birds of Colonial America (1985), p. 103) In this stunning print, the charming catbird is pictured perched on a thin stem of sweet pepperbush, a shrub that thrives in damp areas.
Trained as a botanist, Catesby travelled to Virginia in 1712 and remained there for seven years, sending back to England collections of plants and seeds. With the encouragement of Sir Hans Sloane and others, Catesby returned to America in 1722 to seek materials for his 'Natural History'; he travelled extensively in Carolina, Georgia, Florida, and the Bahamas, sending back further specimens. His preface provides a lengthy account of the development of this work, including his decision to study with Joseph Goupy in order to learn to etch his plates himself to ensure accuracy and economy.
A lovely and important work, embodying the most impressive record made during the colonial period of the natural history of an American colony. The most significant work of American natural history before Audubon's Birds of America.
Cf. Anker 95; cf. Clark I:55; cf. Dunthorne 72; cf. Fine Bird Books (1990), p. 86; cf. Great Flower Books (1990), p.85; cf. Meisel III:340; cf. Nissen BBI 336, IVB 177; cf. Sabin 11509; cf. Stafleu & Cowan TL2 1057; cf. Wood p. 282; cf. Amy Meyers and Margaret Pritchard, Empire's Nature, Mark Catesby's New World Vision, Williamsburg, 1998; cf. Feduccia, Catesby's Birds of Colonial America, pp. 103-4.
#14545$1,500.00
 CRADOCK, Marmaduke (1660-1717)
[A set of four ornithological prints]
London: Josephus Sympson, 1741. Large folio (16 1/2 x 20 5/16 inches). Without text (as issued). 4 copper-engraved plates by Josephus Sympson after Marmaduke Cradock, window-mounted within a modern cloth box, leather lettering-piece.
A fine lively series featuring at least 16 different species of birds.
Cradock was born at Somerton, near Ilchester, in Somerset in about 1660. He was apprenticed to a house painter in London, but at the end of the apprenticeship turned to painting animals, birds and still life. His success with private patrons was limited and, in the main, he produced pictures for dealers. The DNB describes his work for Josephus Sympson as being `very spirited' and notes that it was not until after his death that the 'merits of his pictures were recognised, and they rose in value'. Walpole praised some of his work, and examples are included in Lord Derby's famous collection at Knowsley and the Yale Centre for British Art.
The subjects of the plates are as follows:
1. A kestrel (?) carries off a chick, whilst a cock and hen and their four remaining chicks take flight, looking on are a pea-hen (?) and a barn owl, whilst a wren and a tit squabble on a roof nearby.
2. A cock pheasant stands guard on a stump, a juvenile pheasant makes off with an ear of corn, at a stream close by two kingfishers perch, on the banks of the stream a family of ducks (a drake, the female and 4 ducklings) feed, above them a third kingfisher flies off, in the background a duck sits on her nest.
3. A pigeon stands on a block of masonry, watched by a tit, a robin and a second pigeon, a short-tailed parrot perches on a nearby branch, above a pair of lapwings.
4. A woodpecker returns to the nest-hole to be greeted by its mate, on a nearby branch three sparrows perch, to the right of them are a pair of swallows and a fourth sparrow preening itself.
#3547$5,500.00
 CURTIS, William (1746-1799) and others, editors
The Botanical Magazine; or, Flower-Garden displayed
London: various imprints, 1787-1826. 54 volumes in 33 (vols. I-XLII in 21, index vols. to vols. I-XX and vols. I-XLII in one, vols. XLIII-LIII), octavo (9 x 5 1/2 inches). Uncoloured engraved portrait frontispiece of Curtis (at front of index vol.), 2694 engraved plates (2691 hand-coloured [178 of these folding]). Near-uniform contemporary tree calf, covers with gilt roll-tool border, the flat spines divided into six compartments, red morocco lettering-piece in the second, green morocco in the fourth, the others with repeat decoration in gilt centered on a large cornucopia tool, marbled endpapers.
A complete run in an exceptional binding of the first two series of one of the oldest scientific periodicals of its kind with hand-coloured engravings. "The reputation of the Magazine has always resided in the accuracy of its portrayal of plants. This pictorial record of garden and greenhouse plants from the temperate and tropical regions of the world has no rival.." (Desmond p.7)
William Curtis had witnessed from personal experience that his clients refused to buy folio pictures of plants (vide. his Flora Londinensis) but he felt that they would subscribe to an octavo work which pictured the showy plants that filled their gardens: from this premise was born the Botanical Magazine in February 1787. The work was immediately successful, and the early volumes were quickly re-issued. The bound volumes of the present set comprises First Series: vols. 1-42 in 21 vols; New Series (1st), vols. 43-53 in 11 vols. Curtis edited the work until his death in 1799 (vols.1-13), John Sims then took over until 1826. Also included are two general indices for the first 42 volumes, issued in 1805 (with a fine portrait of Curtis) and 1817. The plates were worked on by most of the most prominent botanical artists of the day, but the majority of the plates up to volume 43 are by Sydenham Edwards.
Great Flower Books (1990) pp. 156-7; Henrey 473; Hunt 689; Nissen BBI 2350; Pritzel 2007; Stafleu & Cowan TL2 1290.
#17309$45,000.00
 DODART, Denis (1634-1707), and Nicolas ROBERT (1614-1685)
[Estampes pour servir l'histoire des plantes]
Paris: [circa 1786). 2 volumes, broadsheet (21 7/16 x 15 7/16 inches). Engraved throughout, without title and text (as issued). Frontispiece of the first meeting of the "Académie royale des sciences" by and after Sebastien le Clerc, 319 engraved plates by Nicolas Robert, Abraham Bosse and Louis de Chatillon after Nicolas Robert and de Chatillon, with occasional engraved additions and alterations by Jean Marchant, all numbered in pencil, 16 without captions. Contemporary marbled calf gilt, covers with double-fillet borders and centrally-placed royal arms of Louis XVI of France, expertly rebacked to style, spines in eight compartments with raised bands, bands highlighted with roll-tool, red morocco lettering-piece in the second compartment, blue morocco lettering-piece in the third, the other compartments with decorative repeat pattern of large central flower spray tool surrounded by small tools and foliage corner-pieces rebacked, expert repairs to corners. Provenance: Earls of Derby (Knowsley Hall, armorial bookplate).
"The finest collection of flower engravings made during the seventeenth century" (Blunt).
This very rare complete collection of engravings is by or after Nicolas Robert, the greatest botanical artist of the seventeenth century. Together, the plates form a valuable and unique record of plants in cultivation in the second half of that century."The Recueil des plantes was judged by the master flower painter Gerard van Spaendonck to be the most beautiful botanical work ever published" (Oak Spring Flora). Hunt writes that the plates to this work "rank among the best botanical engravings ever produced."
The work was never formally published or offered for public sale. The present copy was given as a Royal gift in about 1786 and is bound in a binding bearing the French Royal arms. Notably, it includes the important frontispiece (not always present) by and after Sebastien Le Clerc, depicting Louis XIV visiting a meeting of the Académie Royale des Sciences. Subsequent to its gift in the 18th century, this copy entered the great natural history library of the Earls of Derby at Knowsley Hall.
"Nicolas Robert (1614-85) must ever be remembered for three important contributions to botanical art: - for the famous Guirlande de Julie, for his flower paintings on vellum for Gaston, and Louis XIV; and for [the present work] - the finest collection of flower engravings made during the seventeenth century. Robert's name first occurs as an illustrator of a small book of etchings of flowers entitled Fiori Diversi (Rome: 1640). His father was an inn-keeper at Langres, and the circumstances in which the young man made the journey to Italy remain unknown; but he must already have made some reputation for himself, for the following year he was chosen to illustrate a book of unusual interest and importance, the Guirlande de Julie ... Before [the baron de] Sainte-Maure set out for the wars, he had given his fiancée [the witty, beautiful and virtuous Julie d'Angennes, daughter of Madame de Rambouillet], as a birthday gift, an album of flowers - the chef d'oeuvre de la galanterie known as the "Guirlande de Julie." In the making of it, Nicolas Robert had collaborated with Jarry, the greatest calligrapher of the day ... Overnight Robert found himself famous; shortly afterwards, when Gaston d'Orléans was seeking a painter to make a permanent record of his collection, his eye naturally fell upon the young painter of the celebrated Guirlande. To form a true impression of the diversity and brilliance of Robert's talent as a painter, it is necessary to study his work at the Muséum of the Jardin des Plantes ... Outline is reduced to a bare minimum, and, as in medieval illumination, the neutral tone of the shadows is often disregarded. Form and texture are suggested by an infinity of finely hatched strokes... At the time of Gaston's death in 1660, the collection filled five large folio volumes. The majority of the drawings are flowers, though there are also many birds and other objects of natural history. Appointed in 1664 to the post of 'peintre ordinaire de Sa Majesté pour la miniature,' Robert now continued in Paris and at Versailles the work he had begun at Blois ... It is believed to have been the great Scottish botanist Robert Morison (1620-1683), a Royalist in exile from 1650 to 1660, Superintendent of Gastons' gardens at Blois, who first persuaded Nicolas Robert to interest himself in scientific botanical illustration. In the years spent at Blois, the latter had learned to become more than a mere purveyor of floral beauty; it was fitting, therefore, when the newly founded Académie Royale des Sciences decided to publish a History of Plants, that he should be chosen as its chief illustrator" (Wilfred Blunt & William T. Stearn, The Art of Botanical Illustration, 1994, pp.118-121).
"The original idea for this encyclopaedic undertaking was conceived by Perrault and the proposal was enthusiastically received by Colbert, minister to Louis XIV, although it appears to have actually begun to take shape when the botanist Denis Dodart (1634-1707) joined the Académie in 1673. His work, Mémoires pour servir à l'Histore des Plantes, which was intended to form the introductory volume to this series, appeared in 1675 and contained thirty-nine plates by Robert. In it Dodart lamented the fact that none of the engravings could be in colour, but at least, he assured the reader, all the illustrations in the new series would be drawn directly from life, the artist making every effort to present the plants in their actual dimensions ... Putting to one side his regular activity of flower painting on vellum in order to concentrate on this project, Robert managed to produce an enormous number of engravings [but at the time of his death the work was incomplete] ... Most of the engravings show the plants in flower, complete with their roots, and many are accompanied by enlarged drawings of certain details. This work was clearly the result of a close collaboration between the scientist and artist, both seeking to portray the plant as accurately as possible. The plates engraved by Robert are instantly distinguishable by the lightness of his touch and by the sensitive modulation of the various tones of grey and black in the leaves and flowers" (Lucia Tongiorgi Tomasi, An Oak Spring Flora, 1997, pp. 168-170). Part of the original intention had been that the engravings should accompany text based on the latest chemical, medical and botanical analysis of the species depicted: this text was never published.
The earliest issues of these engravings were printed in circa 1685, at about the time of Robert's death to provide an example of a "work in progress" to the Académie Royale des Sciences and include about 272 plates. In 1701, the complete work was printed containing 319 plates. In 1719, Jean Marchant added details of plant structures to the plates, based upon Tournefort and Vaillant, with occasional changes of plant names. Throughout the 18th century, very occasional collections of the plates were printed and given as gifts, with the numbers of plates in these collections varying greatly. In circa 1786, the "royal gift issue" was published [as the present copy], with the addition of the important frontispiece by Sebastien le Clerc and the full complement of 319 plates. In 1788, a second issue of this edition was published. All issues are of the utmost rarity.
BM(NH) IV, p.1515; Brunet IV.1325; Bultingaire Les Velins du Museum d'Histore Naturelle de Paris [n.d.]; Great Flower Books (1990) p.91; Hunt 'Flora Portrayed' (1985) p.21; Hunt 'Printmaking in the Service of Botany' (1986) 16; Laissus & Monseigny 'Les Plantes du Roi' in Revue d'histoire des sciences, XXII, fasc. 3,pp.193-2346; Nissen BBI 533 & 504; Rix The Art of the Plant World p.61; Tomasi An Oak Spring Flora 43.
#15131$240,000.00
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