“Mathewsiella Magnifica (Magnificent Rifle-Bird)

One of the last of the great hand colored ornithological works. This twelve volume work was the passion of Gregory Macalister Mathews (1876-1949). Born and educated in Australia, Mathews moved with his wife to England in the early 1900s where his life was consumed with hunting, races and horse-shows until a visit to the British Museum. There he was inspired to create a work on the ornithology of Australia. He became obsessed with his project (the work would consist of twelve volumes) spending hours on research, writing, skin and book-collecting. The Danish artist Henrik Gronvold created the hand colored illustrations.

Hand colored lithograph

13 ½ x 9 ½ inches sheet size.