Date of Printing: 1794 • Medium: Copperplate Engraving (hand colored) • Subject Category: Natural History - Birds • Signed: Unsigned • Period Created: Enlightenment (1700 - 1799) • Plate Size HxWxD cm: 20.2 x 11.8 • Leaf Paper Size HxW cm: 23.4 x 13.4 • Style: Original Vintage • Print on Verso: Blank on verso • Condition: Excellent, with minor specs and spotting • Edition Type: 1st Edition - Limited • Paper Type: Woven • Framed: Print only
Edward Donovan, from "The Natural History of British Birds", 1794 - The Black Grouse (Tetrao tetrix)
We are pleased to offer a print from The Natural History of British Birds, Edward Donovan's great work on birds, published in 1794. These volumes are particularly prized for the artistry and composition of each print, and the beauty and intensity of the fine hand coloring. The quality of the engraving and the hand coloring of these prints cannot be conveyed by the digital image. They are the most finely hand colored of all the Donovan prints. Each one is a jewel of perfection.
There is little or no foxing, with characteristic strong plate marks. The photos are very accurate, so please review carefully. The condition of these prints is remarkable for a work that is over 200 years old. Small spec upper right in picture. Please see photos.
Of all the prints we see, none rivals the beauty of the Donovans. With their unsurpassed hand coloring, beautiful poses & surrounding scenes, they are second to none. The paper is silky & no expense was spared in their creation. Such attention to quality eventually drove Donovan into bankruptcy. In 1974, the Portmeirion Pottery Company produced a line of dinnerware utilizing about 40 of Donovan's birds.