John Gould (1804-1881) was the most renowned ornithologist and recorder of birds in Great Britain in the 19^th century. He produced over forty separate folio volumes of birds from around the world yet his spectacular A Monograph of the Trochilidae, or Family of Hummingbirds is his most famous work. Each remarkably detailed and gorgeously hand colored bird is drawn to scale and anatomically correct down to the smallest detail. Gould even captured the iridescence of the hummingbird’s plumage with a special technique of mixing metals and varnish with the pigments.  He was involved in all aspects of the production of the book. He selected the species to be depicted, created sketches showing the pose of the birds and composition of their landscape backgrounds, published the works himself and found subscribers to cover the production costs.

Hand colored lithograph.
15 1/4 x 22 inches, sheet.
Sheet archivally floated within silk covered mat and framed to museum specifications to finished size of 30 1.2 x 23 1/2 inches, overall.
Excellent condition and color.

John Gould (1804-1881) was the most renowned ornithologist and recorder of birds in Great Britain in the 19th century. He produced over forty separate folio volumes of birds from around the world yet his spectacular A Monograph of the Trochililidae, or Family of Hummingbirds is his most famous work. Each remarkably detailed and gorgeously hand colored bird is drawn to scale and anatomically correct down to the smallest detail. Gould even captured the iridescence of the hummingbird’s plumage with a special technique of mixing metals and varnish with the pigments. He was involved in all aspects of the production of the book. He selected the species to be depicted, created sketches showing the pose of the birds and composition of their landscape backgrounds, published the works himself and found subscribers to cover the production costs.

Hand colored lithograph.
15 1/4 x 22 inches, sheet.
Excellent condition with light overall patina.

John Gould (1804-1881) was the most renowned ornithologist and recorder of birds in Great Britain in the 19th century. He produced over forty separate folio volumes of birds from around the world yet his spectacular A Monograph of the Trochililidae, or Family of Hummingbirds is his most famous work. Each remarkably detailed and gorgeously hand colored bird is drawn to scale and anatomically correct down to the smallest detail. Gould even captured the iridescence of the hummingbird’s plumage with a special technique of mixing metals and varnish with the pigments. He was involved in all aspects of the production of the book. He selected the species to be depicted, created sketches showing the pose of the birds and composition of their landscape backgrounds, published the works himself and found subscribers to cover the production costs.

Lovely description of two hummingbirds, life size on a flowering plant called “Tacsonia sanguinea.”

Hand colored lithograph with accompanying text.
21.5 x 14 1/4 x 22 inches, sheet.
Archivally framed in carved gold leave frame and linen wrapped matting.
Excellent condition.

John Gould (1804-81) was the most prolific ornithological artist in nineteenth century Britain. He created thousands of orginal prints of birds. His great talent, renown and impact upon the science of natural history cause him to be referred to as “the British Audubon.” Gould inherited his love of nature from his father who was a gardener on the royal estate at Windsor. At the age of 21, John Gould established his own taxidermy business, and two years later, he became the taxidermist for the Zoological Society of London. This position was vitally important to the success of the books Gould later published. He had the opportunity to handle and acquire specimens from all over the world and rapidly acquired the ability to display his subjects in remarkably lifelike poses. The monumental The Birds of Great Britain was Gould’s last big project. It is often considered to be his best work. In it, he fully exploited the formula that he had developed in his earlier books in which each hand colored lithograph includes a male and female pair and the birds are shown full-size, in life-like positions with background elements such as habitat, nest, young, insects, etc. The depiction of birds was John Gould’s passion. He worked on designs for his books until the very last days of his life.

14 x 21 inches, sheet.
Handcolored lithograph.
Excellent condition with light overall patina.
With accompanying text.