Illustrations of Birds for John Gould by Edward Lear (Folio Society Limited Edition)
By Edward Lear & David Attenborough
- Stock Code:
- 1110002923029
- Publisher:
- London: The Folio Society, 2012.
- Pages:
- See description.
Edward Lear had an eye for landscapes and an ear for rhyme, but it was neither as a travel painter nor as a writer of comic verse that he first displayed his prolific talent. Between 1832 and 1838, Lear created a series of 80 bird portraits for John Gould, one of the most famous figures in the history of ornithology.
In the minds of many, the illustrations in this volume are some of the finest ever ornithological illustrations. The plates in the original work were coloured by hand and have been reproduced with utmost faith in this facsimile edition. Witnessing the result, the success of the endeavour is clear.
This work was undertaken with personal involvement from Sir David Attenborough, who compiled the illustrations, provided the introduction, and personally signed each copy. While the majority of illustrations are from The Birds of Europe, a vast publication issued in 22 parts between 1832 and 1837, there are also inclusions from A Monograph of the Ramphastidae or Family of Toucans, A Monograph or Family of Trogons, and The Birds of Australia.
Attenborough’s mission to track down the complete set of Lear’s bird prints lasted almost half a century. They are presented in this volume for the first time as a complete set. Accompanying this, the luxurious gilt decorations to the covers were hand-drawn and stamped with meticulous care. The volumes were also hand-bound with the endpapers marbled by manually in the classic “Turkish Spot” style All of this work was undertaken to replicate the highest standards of 19th century fine bird books.
Housed in black buckram solander case. Hand bound in full black goatskin, profusely decorated in gilt. Spine titling in gilt, five raised bands with compartments gilt decorated. Introduction by David Attenborough. Fine. Like new. Impeccably preserved. A truly stunning collection of some of the most important avian illustrations ever made.
Folio Society Limited Edition (68/780). London: The Folio Society, 2012. Elephant folio. Original full black Morocco. Pages: 184. 80 full-page colour illustrated plates.
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