A History of Birds of Europe. 1871-1882 Biography of the Artist(s) and Description of the Work We are please to offer a selection of prints from the extremely rare (only 250 copies issued to subscribers only) first and only edition of “A History of the Birds of Europe”, published from 1871 to 1882 by Henry Eeles Dresser, an exhaustive review of the avifauna of the Palearctic Region: the first complete work on the avifauna of Ancient World since that of Gould. Dresser (1838-1915) has included the whole of the Western Palaearctic Region, thus adopting natural rather than political boundaries. Dresser notes in his introduction that his monumental work was the first since Gould's Birds of Europe (London: the Author, 1837) to cover the ornithology of Europe. The necessity of the work is clearly justified by Dresser's comparison of his own magnum opus and Gould's: he states that 'it was remarked to us by a well-known naturalist that we should be able to add but few species to the European list', and calculates that while Gould listed 449 species, this work describes 624. Dresser's other objective was to extend the range of species considered European, and he 'avoided taking the limits of Europe, politically speaking, as previous authors on the subject have done, but... adopted natural instead of political boundaries', leading to the inclusion of 'a broad strip of Northern Africa, the Azores, Canaries, and Madeira, and the major portion of Asia Minor' (I, pp.vii-viii). Many of the descriptions and illustrations are based on examples in Dresser's own collection, which Mullens and Swann record was formed between 1852 and his death, and contained 'between 11000 and 12000 bird-skins'. Most of the accurate and vivid representations of birds are from John Gerrard Keulemans, that a number of critics have rightly placed above his contemporaries in his field. Few plates are after drawing of Edward Neale, Archibald Thorburn, William Hart and Joseph Smith. Very few - and magnificent - plates are after drawings of Joseph Wolf, a talented artist that also contributed 57 drawings to Gould's "Birds of Great Britain". J.G. Keulemans (June 1842 - March 1912) was born in Rotterdam and was a Dutch bird illustrator. He also spent a great deal of time in London, as well as in Africa and the Cape Verde Islands. He described a species of warbler, Calamodyta (Acrocephalus) brevipennis (Nederl. Tijdschr. Dierk. (Amsterdam), ex Dohrn), in 1866. In 1869 he moved to England and illustrated a large number of best known nagnificent ornithology books, and regulary provided illustrations for "The Ibis" and "The proceeding of Zoological Society". Keulemans illustrated, among other: - Keulemans' "Onze Vogels in Huis and Tuin" (Our birds in home and garden) (1869), that was the only work that was not only illustrated but also written by Keulemans; - Sharp's "Monograph of the Alcedinidae" (1868-1871); - Buller's "A History of Birds of New Zealand" (1873-1878); - Legge's "Histrory of the Birds of Ceylon" (1880); - Elliot's "Monograph of the Bucerotidae (hornbills)" (1887-1892); - Godman's "Monograph of the Petrels" (1907-1910); Keleumans also illustrated, and rendered most of the images on stones, well before publication, of the Magnificent Mathews' "Birds of Australia". The present work “A History of the Birds of Europe” can be characterized as being beautifully executed traditional lithography, with an extraordinary rendering in very fine detail, all with original handcolouring, showing the subjects in association with indigenous flowering plants in their natural state and habitat. The colours are bright and very intense on a white medium weight paper and are heightened with arabic gum, to provide them a more glossed and vivid appearance. They were signed "J.G. Keulemans" in the plate, or by the last name alone, but by 1880 Keulemans simply used his initials. The condition of these prints is very good. There is no foxing. On white paper, that is in pristine conditions. Each print measures approximately 9 3/8 inches wide - 12 3/8 inches long (24x31,5 cm). There is no descriptive text. All our prints are authentic hand coloured antique prints, and the Keuleman’s - Wolf are about 150 years old & in outstanding condition. We describe all items as accurately as possible with any condition exceptions noted. Please use your judgement to confirm our accuracy and take into consideration that unless otherwise stated, these items are used. Please make careful decisions before bidding and email us with any questions. Bibliography Reference: Anker 120; Ellis 711; Fine Bird Books (1990) p. 92; Mullens and Swann p. 179; Nissen IVB 267; Wood p. 324; Zimmer p. 177. |