The Birds of America. John James Audubon · Public domain · source

John James Audubon

Public domain1785-1851·American·illustration·Wikipedia ↗

Who

Franco-American naturalist and painter who set out to paint every bird in North America at life size, and very nearly did. The Birds of America was published in London in 87 parts between 1827 and 1838.

Why they matter

The 435 double-elephant folio plates, engraved and hand-coloured by Robert Havell, are the most valuable printed book in the world: complete copies have sold for over ten million dollars. They are also the founding images of American wildlife art and conservation.

What to buy

Originals: a print ladder exists. Havell edition plates (1827-38) run from a few thousand to several hundred thousand dollars. The Bien edition chromolithographs (1858-60) are rarer and cheaper. The Royal Octavo edition (1840-44 and later), a reduced version with 500 small hand-coloured lithographs, is the affordable genuine Audubon: a few hundred dollars a plate, and common on eBay. Beware the Amsterdam edition (1971-72) and Princeton facsimiles sold as period plates; paper and watermark tell them apart. Books: the National Audubon Society hosts every plate free at high resolution, so a printed reproduction is for the shelf, not the reference.

Notes

The New-York Historical Society holds all 435 original watercolours.

Key works

The Birds of America (1827-1838) - 435 hand-coloured aquatint plates
Wild Turkey (plate 1 of The Birds of America)
The Viviparous Quadrupeds of North America (1845-1848)

John James Audubon

Who

Why they matter

What to buy

Notes

Key works

In museum collections

See the work

Prints

Books

Originals

See also