Folio: 12 1/2" X 9 1/2" (including margins).

We are proud to be able to offer a fine FIRST EDITION original  hand colored bird print by Francois Nicolas Martinet (1731-1800) from his masterful work entitled Histoire Naturelle Des Oiseaux which was published between 1767-76.

 This work was the most famous & comprehensive ornithological work of the 18th century, for which Francois Nicolas Martinet, the foremost bird artist of his day, provided all the bird illustrations. Great Bird Books says of this book "Certainly the most ambitious & comprehensive bird book, ranks still as one of the most important of all bird books from the collectors' point of view."

Martinet's colleague, George Louis Leclerc Buffon (1707-1788), of aristocratic French origins, was the preeminent scientist and mathematician of late 18th century. He directed the Jardin des Plantes botanical garden in Paris, which still exists today. His most outstanding achievement came in the field of natural history with the publication of the monumental Histoire Naturelle, Générale et Particulière (1749-1788) in 36 volumes, for which Martinet created all the bird illustrations which were also published separately in Histoire Naturelle des Oiseaux. The work was translated into many different languages, becoming a best seller of the day, and strong competition to the publications of such philosophers as Voltaire and Rousseau.

Buffon's contributions to modern science are enormous. Charles Darwin wrote in the fourth edition of On the Origin of Species: "the first author who in modern times has treated it [evolution] in a scientific spirit was Buffon."

In addition to introducing the concept of evolution to science, he laid the foundations for the development of comparative anatomy and introduced the concept of the earth's existence for much longer than the 6,000 years commonly held then.

Francois Nicolas Martinet (1725-1804) was the French court engraver and artist. He illustrated many of the plays and operas by the luminaries of the day such as Voltaire, also drawing and engraved landscapes, portraits of notables and scenes of Versailles. He lived through one of the most tumultuous times in French history, witnessing the reigns of Louis XV, followed by the excesses of Louis XV1 and Marie Antoinette at Versailles. Towards the end of his life, he saw the French Revolution and the Reign of Terror, followed by the ascent of Napoleon. His most enduring gift to the world is this beautiful work, popular now for almost 250 years.

We are fortunate enough to have acquired a large collection of these of these fine images and will be listing them in the ensuing weeks/months.

Thank you for looking and please be sure and look at our other auctions for other fine works by Audubon from the first as well as the 1860 editions of the Birds Of America. We also have other architectural, natural history plates as well as original maps, all guaranteed original.