Audebert, Jean Baptiste and Louis Jean Pierre Viellot

FIRST EDITION. ONE OF 200 FOLIO COPIES, WITH THE CAPTIONS PRINTED IN GOLD, 2 volumes, folio (500 x 330mm.), 190 etched plates (one double-page) by Audebert, printed in colours (including gold) by Langlois, CONTEMPORARY FRENCH RED MOROCCO GILT BY BOZERIAN, covers with wide border gilt of foliate and ornithological motifs (Culot, Bozerian roulette 50), spines similarly gilt in compartments, gilt edges, binding rubbed, a few areas of abrasion, spines somewhat faded, some light foxing

Anker 14; Fine Bird Books, p.56; Nissen IVB 47; Ronsil 103; Wood, p.206; Zimmer, p.17

Condition is described in the main body of the cataloguing, where appropriate
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

The general title of the work is actually taken from the half-titles, each volume treating several genera and having its own title-page: Histoire naturelle et generale des colibris, oiseaux-mouches, jacamars et promerops (volume I) and Histoire naturelle et generale des grimperaux et des oiseaux de paradis (volume II). The humming birds (colibris and oiseaux-mouches) are treated most thoroughly.

"The colours of the birds and their handsome appearance have evidently been the cause of their selection for inclusion in the book. The plates with the bird portraits are in beautiful colors; in this respect they are among the best colour prints found in ornithology" (Anker). In his preface, Audebert justifiably lays great stress on the fact that all the colours, even the gold referred to in the title, are printed by a process devised by himself, and not applied by hand. The plates were etched by Audebert after his own designs and those of "les plus habiles artistes de Paris," with the assistance of Louis Bouquet in colouring the plates, and of Langlois in printing them in oil colours. Audebert died before he was able to complete his great work, finishing only the section on the colibris, after which it was continued by Viellot on the basis of Audebert's drawings and his notes on the oiseaux-mouches.