These very beautiful & charming prints seem to have become very scarce. Engravings from 'Shaw & Nodder' became sort of collector's cult classics. The hand colored plates in this work are prized by collectors for their artistic qualities and are becoming increasingly harder to find as the supply vanishes.

The publication: The Naturalist’s Miscel­lany was published in monthly installments from August 1789 through July 1813. Each installment featured three—later four—engraved and beautifully hand-tinted plates, along with descriptions in Latin and English.

Famed naturalist George Kearsley Shaw (1751-1813) collaborated with Frederick Polydore Nodder (1770-1800) who was responsible for the distinctive illustrations in the Naturalist’s Miscellany. 

The epic project was dedicated to Queen Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (1744–1818) wife of King George III from 1761 until her death in 1818. For reference, included in the photos is a facsimile of the title-pages & dedication from a volume on the Biodiversity Heritage Library's website.

The Naturalist: George Shaw was Keeper of Natural History in the British Museum & a founding member of the Linnaean Society. He produced a number of massive works on natural history and related subjects, including General Zoology in 14 volumes, the lavishly illustrated Cimelia Physica, and Museum Leverianum in two illustrated volumes.

The Artists: Frederick Polydore Nodder was responsible for the distinctive illustrations in the work. Nodder was an English flora and fauna illustrator; also an accomplished copperplate engraver. Frederick Nodder must have died in 1800 or 1801. For a short while after his death, the engraved signature showed his wife, Elizabeth’s name instead. Many were also done by Frederick's son, Richard Nodder. Richard exhibited at the Royal Academy and became botanic painter to King George III.

The drawing & coloring in this little gem are lovely. It's a beautiful plate, full of the passion that the early natural history painters & engravers.

Every part of these prints was made by hand: Hand drawn & engraved on Copper which was hand-mined, smelted & rolled, printed onto handmade cotton rag paper, inked & colored with hand-ground pigments individually by hand, & they were usually hand sewn into handmade leather-bound books.

Condition: Appears to be in superb condition as these go, with the typical age character of an engraving over 200 years old. The hand-coloring appears to remain sharp & brilliant as the day it was painted.

These prints are very old & may have minor imperfections expected with age, such as some typical age-toning of the paper, oxidation of the old original watercolors, spots, text-offsetting, artifacts from having been bound into a book, etc. Please examine the photos & details carefully.

Text Page(s): This one comes with original text pages.

About this creature:

• The malachite sunbird (Nectarinia famosa) is a small nectarivorous bird found from the highlands of Ethiopia southwards to South Africa
• They pollinate many flowering plants, particularly those with long corolla tubes, in the Fynbos
• Sunbirds (Nectariniidae) are all passerines, often brightly colored with iridescent plumage, and short, almost straight, to long and markedly decurved, bills like this magnificent one, where the breeding male is unmistakable: bright, vivid green with a long tail & long curved beak for sipping nectar.

Size: 9 x 5-1/2" inches approximately.

Shipping: Multiple prints combine into one USPS Flat-Rate envelope. If you'd like to combine & need more time to choose, please send a message & we'll do our best to oblige. If you're assessed multiple shipping for one combined package, we'll endeavor to refund any overage asap.

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