Birds of America is considered to be one of the finest colour plate works on ornithology ever produced. Using freshly killed specimens that were wired into lifelike positions, Audubon created the first illustrations of birds that looked as if they were alive.
Originally issued in 87 parts, each part cost two guineas each and consisted of five hand-coloured plates executed on paper measuring 75cm x 100cm. Audubon had originally aimed at a print run of 500, although he probably only completed less than 200 full sets of prints.
The Library's copy, which is one of 120 known copies, is bound in four double elephant folios containing 435 hand-coloured aquatint plates. Birds of America is accompanied by an index, Synopsis of Birds of America (1839) and a five-volume text entitled Ornithological biography (1831-39).
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