Old Master Drawing
Mark CATESBY - Red Bellied Woodpecker and Hairy Woodpecker
Price:
CHF 3,500.00 CHF
Regular price:
Large original 19th century old master drawing and watercolor on paper of an 18th-century natural history illustration engraved by the German artist Johann Michael Seligmann after the original work of British naturalist Mark Catesby. It depicts two woodpecker species native to North America ("Nord-America").
Species Depicted
The handwritten text at the bottom of the plate precisely identifies both birds:
- The Red-bellied Woodpecker (Picus carolinus, currently classified as Melanerpes carolinus): Positioned on the left side of the trunk, it is recognizable by its black-and-white barred back and its bright red cap extending down the nape.
- The Hairy Woodpecker (Picus villosus, currently classified as Leuconotopicus villosus): Clinging to the right side, it features a more contrasted plumage with large white spots on a black background and a distinctive small red patch at the back of its head.
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330 mm x 235 mm
Origin of the Work
This print comes from the famous “Sammlung verschiedener ausländischer und seltener Vögel” (Collection of Various Foreign and Rare Birds), published in Nuremberg between 1749 and 1776. For this major ornithological work, Seligmann re-engraved on copper plates and translated the celebrated illustrations of Mark Catesby (The Natural History of Carolina, Florida and the Bahama Islands) and George Edwards, helping to share the fauna of the New World with a European audience.
Mark CATESBY - Red Bellied Woodpecker and Hairy Woodpecker
CHF 3,500.00 CHF