“THE MOST SPLENDID BOOK EVER PRODUCED IN RELATION TO AMERICA… ONE OF THE FINEST ORNITHOLOGICAL WORKS EVER PRINTED”: RARE FIRST OCTAVO EDITION OF AUDUBON’S BIRDS OF AMERICA, WITH 500 SUPERB HAND-COLORED PLATES

AUDUBON, John James. The Birds of America from Drawings Made in the United States and Their Territories. New York and Philadelphia: J.J. Audubon and J.B. Chevalier, 1840-44. Seven volumes. Royal octavo, contemporary full green morocco, gilt-decorated spines. $120,000.

First octavo edition, and first American edition, containing 500 superb hand-colored plates after Audubon by W.E. Hitchcock, R. Trembly and others, printed and colored by J.T. Bowen. An elegantly bound copy of this American classic.

"The Birds of America exemplifies man's ability to accomplish an almost impossible task through sacrifice and persistence. Audubon set out to paint and publish an example of every bird on the North American continent… He was the first artist-naturalist to illustrate American birds, life-size, in natural poses; the backgrounds, or habitats, are more natural looking than those of his predecessors." (Handbook of Audubon Prints, 17-18). "His first objective was to observe birds in their native habitat, to see their behavior, their ways of standing, walking flying, their feeding and nesting habits, seasonal plumage and all the rest. He traveled up and down the Mississippi and Ohio River areas, and up and down the Atlantic seaboard from Maine to Key West. He spent a winter near Charleston, South Carolina… traveled to Labrador, Newfoundland, and Nova Scotia… and Texas" (Gifts of Genius, 137). "The most splendid book ever produced in relation to America, and certainly one of the finest ornithological works ever printed… [Audubon] insisted on drawing from life, never from stuffed specimens, and was much in advance of his time in portraying the birds (in many cases unrecorded species) in their natural surroundings… The courage and faith of the Audubon family is breathtaking… This immense undertaking, this unparalleled achievement, was not the production of a great and long-established publishing house, nor was it backed by a wealthy institution. It was the work of a man of relentless energy, with no private fortune, who supported himself by hack painting… It is a story without equal in the whole history of publishing" (Great Books and Book Collectors, 210-13). This first octavo edition now represents the only realistic opportunity that exists for collectors to own an entire collection of Audubon images in a form that was overseen and approved by the great artist himself. This royal octavo edition, which Audubon referred to as the "petit edition," contained new species of birds and plants not included in the double elephant folio edition (published in Edinburgh and London between 1827 and 1838), with the birds grouped in an orderly scientific manner. Grolier 45. Ayer/Zimmer, 22. Bennett, 5. McGill/Wood, 208. Nissen IVB 51. Sabin 2364. Reese 34.

Light to moderate foxing to text as often seen, plates almost entirely clean; spines gently toned, joints slightly rubbed. A handsome set of one of the most important and desirable of all American plate books.