Joseph Wolf

"Lady Amherst Pheasant (Thaumalea Amherstiae)" Naturalistic Bird Lithograph

1870s

'Kaninchen' (Rabbits) German chromolithograph, circa 1910. Key in German to the types of rabbits at the bottom of the image. Central vertical fold as issued. 245mm by 305mm (shee...

John Gould (British, 1804-1881) Nasiterna Bruijni c. 1849-1861 Hand Colored Lithograph Image Size: approx 19.5 x 13.5 inches Framed Size: 27 3/8 x 21 1/2 inches John Gould was an English ornithologist and bird artist. The Gould League in Australia was named after him. His identification of the birds now nicknamed "Darwin's finches" played a role in the inception of Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection. Gould's work is referenced in Charles Darwin's book, On the Origin of Species. Gould was born in Lyme Regis, Dorset, the son of a gardener, and the boy probably had a scanty education. Shortly afterwards his father obtained a position on an estate near Guildford, Surrey, and then in 1818 became foreman in the Royal Gardens of Windsor. He was for some time under the care of J T Aiton, of the Royal Gardens of Windsor. The young Gould started training as a gardener, being employed under his father at Windsor from 1818 to 1824, and he was subsequently a gardener at Ripley Castle in Yorkshire. He became an expert in the art of taxidermy, and in 1824 he set himself up in business in London as a taxidermist, and his skill led to him becoming the first Curator and Preserver at the museum of the Zoological Society of London in 1827. Gould's position brought him into contact with the country's leading naturalists, and also meant that he was often the first to see new collections of birds given to the Society. In 1830 a collection of birds arrived from the Himalayas, many not previously described. Gould published these birds in A Century of Birds from the Himalaya Mountains (1830-1832). The text was by Nicholas Aylward Vigors, and the illustrations were lithographed by Gould's wife Elizabeth, daughter of Nicholas Coxen of Kent. This work was followed by four more in the next seven years including Birds of Europe in five volumes - completed in 1837, with the text written by Gould himself, edited by his clerk Edwin Prince. Some of the illustrations were made by Edward Lear as part of his Illustrations of the Family of Psittacidae in 1832. Lear however was in financial difficulty, and he sold the entire set of lithographs to Gould. The books were published in a very large size, imperial folio, with magnificent coloured plates. Eventually 41 of these volumes were published with about 3000 plates. They appeared in parts at £3 3s. a number, subscribed for in advance, and in spite of the heavy expense of preparing the plates, Gould succeeded in making his ventures pay and in realizing a fortune. In 1838 he and his wife moved to Australia to work on the Birds of Australia and shortly after his return to England, his wife died in 1841. When Charles Darwin presented his mammal and bird specimens collected during the second voyage of HMS Beagle to the Geological Society of London at their meeting on 4 January 1837, the bird specimens were given to Gould for identification. He set aside his paying work and at the next meeting on 10 January reported that birds from the Galápagos Islands, which Darwin had thought were blackbirds, "gross-bills" and finches were in fact "a series of ground Finches which are so peculiar" as to form "an entirely new group, containing 12 species." This story made the newspapers. In March, Darwin met Gould again, learning that his Galápagos "wren" was another species of finch and the mockingbirds he had labeled by island were separate species rather than just varieties, with relatives on the South American mainland. Subsequently Gould advised that the smaller southern Rhea specimen that had been rescued from a Christmas dinner...

John Gould (British, 1804-1881) Nasiterna Pygmae c. 1849-1861 Hand Colored Lithograph Image Size: approx 19.5 x 13.5 inches Framed Size: 27 3/8 x 21 1/2 inches John Gould was an English ornithologist and bird artist. The Gould League in Australia was named after him. His identification of the birds now nicknamed "Darwin's finches" played a role in the inception of Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection. Gould's work is referenced in Charles Darwin's book, On the Origin of Species. Gould was born in Lyme Regis, Dorset, the son of a gardener, and the boy probably had a scanty education. Shortly afterwards his father obtained a position on an estate near Guildford, Surrey, and then in 1818 became foreman in the Royal Gardens of Windsor. He was for some time under the care of J T Aiton, of the Royal Gardens of Windsor. The young Gould started training as a gardener, being employed under his father at Windsor from 1818 to 1824, and he was subsequently a gardener at Ripley Castle in Yorkshire. He became an expert in the art of taxidermy, and in 1824 he set himself up in business in London as a taxidermist, and his skill led to him becoming the first Curator and Preserver at the museum of the Zoological Society of London in 1827. Gould's position brought him into contact with the country's leading naturalists, and also meant that he was often the first to see new collections of birds given to the Society. In 1830 a collection of birds arrived from the Himalayas, many not previously described. Gould published these birds in A Century of Birds from the Himalaya Mountains (1830-1832). The text was by Nicholas Aylward Vigors, and the illustrations were lithographed by Gould's wife Elizabeth, daughter of Nicholas Coxen of Kent. This work was followed by four more in the next seven years including Birds of Europe in five volumes - completed in 1837, with the text written by Gould himself, edited by his clerk Edwin Prince. Some of the illustrations were made by Edward Lear as part of his Illustrations of the Family of Psittacidae in 1832. Lear however was in financial difficulty, and he sold the entire set of lithographs to Gould. The books were published in a very large size, imperial folio, with magnificent coloured plates. Eventually 41 of these volumes were published with about 3000 plates. They appeared in parts at £3 3s. a number, subscribed for in advance, and in spite of the heavy expense of preparing the plates, Gould succeeded in making his ventures pay and in realizing a fortune. In 1838 he and his wife moved to Australia to work on the Birds of Australia and shortly after his return to England, his wife died in 1841. When Charles Darwin presented his mammal and bird specimens collected during the second voyage of HMS Beagle to the Geological Society of London at their meeting on 4 January 1837, the bird specimens were given to Gould for identification. He set aside his paying work and at the next meeting on 10 January reported that birds from the Galápagos Islands, which Darwin had thought were blackbirds, "gross-bills" and finches were in fact "a series of ground Finches which are so peculiar" as to form "an entirely new group, containing 12 species." This story made the newspapers. In March, Darwin met Gould again, learning that his Galápagos "wren" was another species of finch and the mockingbirds he had labeled by island were separate species rather than just varieties, with relatives on the South American mainland. Subsequently Gould advised that the smaller southern Rhea specimen that had been rescued from a Christmas dinner...

Cangaroos in Danger is a black and white lithograph realized by Friedrich Specht in 1879. Image dimensions: 19,7 x 13,7 cm. Original Title: Am Auftralifchen "Bufch". Dated 1879 an...

This plate is unique because of the bird species' unmistakable beauty and the great scientific and artistic skill with which Elisabeth and Jhon Gould rendered it. The price quoted h...

This plate is unique both for the unmistakable beauty of the bird species and for the great scientific and artistic skill of Elisabeth and Jhon Gould to have rendered it. The price ...

Joseph Fleischmann, 'Whaling' (Hartingers Wandtafeln: Zoologie T. XXXII), monumental vintage color lithograph, 1900. Signed in the matrix, lower right. A superb, beautifully nuanced impression, on cream wove paper, the full sheet with margins (1 1/2 to 2 3/16 inches), in very good condition. Sheet size 28 x 38 1/2 inches (711 x 978 mm). The full sheet, unmounted and unmatted—shipped carefully rolled and protected. Rendering by A. Berger after Joseph Fleischmann. Published by Carl Gerold’s Son, Vienna, 1900. This Artic whaling scene depicts a Greenland whale in the foreground pursued by whalers. A whaling ship is seen in the background and at right, another whale among icebergs with seagulls overhead. The print by Albert Berger...

This plate is unique because of the bird species' unmistakable beauty and the great scientific and artistic skill with which Elisabeth and Jhon Gould rendered it. The price quoted h...

This plate is unique because of the bird species' unmistakable beauty and the great scientific and artistic skill with which Elisabeth and Jhon Gould rendered it. The price quoted h...

This plate is unique both because of the bird species' unmistakable beauty and the great scientific and artistic skill with which Elisabeth and Jhon Gould rendered it. The price quo...