Original Audubon Prints, Restrikes, and Facsimilies
John James Audubon (1785-1851) was the foremost naturalist and the finest artist of his time that captured the birds and quadrupeds of America in his magnificent watercolor paintings. His art work was a labor of love and immense passion. His paintings of the birds resulted in the publication of the Birds of America, a set of four volumes consisting of 435 hand-colored copper plate engravings (the Havell edition) of the birds in their full size on double elephant folio paper (about 39 1/2"x 26 1/2"). His paintings of the quadrupeds resulted in the publication of the Imperial Folio (about 28" x 22") edition of the Viviparous Quadrupeds of North America (jointly published with his good friend and collaborator, Rev. John Bachman who provided the text), consisting of 150 images printed as hand-colored stone lithographs. These were followed by the Royal Octavo edition of the Birds of America and the Octavo edition of the Quadrupeds of North America. Audubon's sons managed to publish a few images from the Birds of America as chromolithograph plates (the Bien edition), before the American Civil War brought a grinding halt to their publication.
This gallery is dedicated to the original prints of John James Audubon, divided into the above five categories. These include the double elephant folio size prints from the Havell Edition and the Bien Edition (chromolithographs) of Birds of America, and the hand-colored stone lithographs from the Imperial Folio Edition of the Viviparous Quadrupeds of North America, the Royal Octavo Edition of the Birds of America, and the Octavo Edition of the Quadrupeds of North America. A section on 20th century Restrikes and Fine Facsimile prints of Audubon's Havell edition birds, and a section on some Audubon-related books are also shown. Also included are two additional pages - - one about John James Audubon and the other on how to identify original Audubon prints.
Please contact us for information about these prints.