TOBACCO LABEL. "Belle of Virginia". Hoen. ca. 1880.
The Belle of Virginia. Manuf’d in the United States of America by David Dunlop, Petersburg VA. U.S.A. In margin: A. Hoen & Co Richmond, VA. 6 ¼” w x 13 ½”h. Colored lithograph. Image in very good condition. This label is probably a leftover copy printed during the 1880’s. Such labels were pasted on crates (also called caddies) or barrels of tobacco.

This is an image of young woman with a pearl necklace and a fan. Below her is a modified image of the Great Seal of Virginia.

David Dunlop was born in Scotland on September 8, 1804. He immigrated to the United States in the mid-1820's and joined his uncle's tobacco manufacturing firm, "Dunlop and Orgain" of Petersburg. After his uncle's death in 1827, Dunlop took over management of the company, which became one of the most successful businesses in antebellum Petersburg. By 1860 his factory employed some 300 persons, mostly slaves and free blacks.

A. Hoen & Co. originally a Baltimore, Maryland-based lithography firm, was founded by Edward Weber in the 1840s as E. Weber & Company. German immigrant August Hoen took it over with his brothers Henry and Ernest in the mid 1850s, upon Weber's death. A branch of A. Hoen opened in Richmond, Virginia in the late 1860s. Among Hoen's earliest Richmond jobs was the printing of Southern currency near the end of the Civil War. In the newer Richmond plant the quality of inks and paper stock, as well as the multi-layer lithography process itself saw great advances, to the point where most Hoen-produced covers and cigar boxes from the 1890s forward still retain their original hues after more than a century. Hoen used the five color multi-layer process for his printing.

TOBACCO LABEL. "Courage." Hoen. ca. 1900.
Courage. British-American Tobacco Co. Ltd. Successor to Wm. Cameron & Bro. Petersburg, VA. In bottom margin: "Dying to save the Queens Colours." An episode in the battle of Insandlwhana The death of Lieutenants Melville and Coghill, 24th Regiment. Lower right in image: Lith. by A. Hoen & Co. Richmond, VA. 10”w x 9 ¾”h. Colored lithograph. Image in very good condition. This label is probably a leftover copy printed during the early 1900s. Such labels were pasted on crates (also called caddies) or barrels of tobacco.

The “Battle of Isandlwana” on January 22, 1879 was the opening, major encounter in the war between the British Empire and the Zulu Kingdom. A 20,000 strong Zulu army equipped mainly with iron spears and cowhide shields defeated a mixed British and native force armed with the state of the art breech-loading rifles and artillery. Over 1,300 British and native troops were killed, while the Zulu warriors suffered approximately one thousand killed.

The British American Tobacco has been in business since 1902 as a joint venture between the UK’s Imperial Tobacco Company and the American Tobacco Company founded by James ‘Buck’ Duke. Despite its name, derived from the home bases of its two founding companies, British American Tobacco was established to trade outside both the UK and the USA and grew to cover Africa, Asia, Latin America and Continental Europe. A. Hoen & Co. originally a Baltimore, Maryland-based lithography firm, was founded by Edward Weber in the 1840s as E. Weber & Company. German immigrant August Hoen took it over with his brothers Henry and Ernest in the mid 1850s, upon Weber's death. A branch of A. Hoen opened in Richmond, Virginia in the late 1860s. Among Hoen's earliest Richmond jobs was the printing of Southern currency near the end of the Civil War. In the newer Richmond plant the quality of inks and paper stock, as well as the multi-layer lithography process itself saw great advances, to the point where most Hoen-produced covers and cigar boxes from the 1890s forward still retain their original hues after more than a century. Hoen used the five color multi-layer process for his printing.

TOBACCO LABEL. "Southdown." ca. 1880.
Southdown. Trade Mark. Maclin-Zimmer-McGill Tobacco Co. Incorporated Petersburg, VA. U.S.A. Lower left: Registered U.S. Patent Office. 10”w x 10”h. Colored lithograph. Image in very good condition. This label is probably a leftover copy printed during the 1880’s. Such labels were pasted on crates (also called caddies) or barrels of tobacco.

This label depicts four blackface sheep in a meadow. The face and feet of Southdown sheep vary in color from gray to brown. The Southdown, one of the oldest English breeds, is a mutton breed of sheep originating on the South Downs of Sussex, England. It is now raised throughout the world and was first imported to the United States in 1803. It is a small sheep, the most thickset of all breeds, and it is valued for the meatiness of the lamb carcasses. The wool is of medium length and fine grade.

THEODOLITE POSTER. c1920.
Precision Theodolites. 24”h x 17”w. Excellent condition. Full color. Metal strip and eyelet hanger at top. Under title: Buff & Buff Instrument Shops. Boston, Massachusetts U. S. A.

This is an advertising poster showing a transit on a wooden tripod. George Louis Buff (1837–1923) was born and educated in Giessen, Germany. He moved to New York in 1864, and in 1869 went into business with his newly designed “Buff’s Precision Transit” which remained in production for at least 70 years. In 1898 he went into business with his sons in a new factory at Jamaica Plain on the outskirts of Boston.

TOBACCO LABEL. Calvert. "Triumph". Ca. 1900.
Triumph. Motto under the scene: So thy Fair hand Enamored Fancy! Gleans the Treasured Picture of a Thousand Scenes.Firm: Watson & McGill. Petersburg, Virginia. Lower left: The Calvert Lith Co. Detroit.

Depicts two chariots racing, both pulled by a single horse. Both charioteers are women, one in pink, and the other in blue.

The tobacco firm “Watson & McGill” was in business in Petersburg from ca. 1830 to 1920.

Thomas Calvert immigrated from England in 1849 and the founded his first graphic arts firm in Philadelphia in 1852. He incorporated “The Calvert Lithographing, Engraving and Map Publishing Company” in 1867, a firm that was to dominate the lithographic market in Detroit. By the 1880s it had become one of the largest lithographers in the U.S., employing over 300 people. In 1897 the legal name of the company was changed to “Calvert Lithography Company”. The firm continued long after Calvert’s death in 1900 and sometime after 1960 was taken over by a Canadian firm.

TOBACCO LABEL. Hoen. "Winner". ca. 1890.
Winner Plug Tobacco Manufactured by British-American Tobacco Co., Ltd. Petersburg, Virginia. Lower right: Lith by A. Hoen & Co. Richmond, VA. Image is 10”w x 10”h. Colored lithograph. Image in very good condition. This label is probably a leftover copy printed during the 1890’s. Such labels were pasted on crates (also called caddies) and barrels of tobacco.

This tobacco label depicts horses jumping through a giant stirrup during a steeplechase.

A. Hoen & Co. originally a Baltimore, Maryland-based lithography firm, was founded by Edward Weber in the 1840s as E. Weber & Company. German immigrant August Hoen took it over with his brothers Henry and Ernest in the mid 1850s, upon Weber's death, and re-named it. A branch of A. Hoen opened in Richmond, Virginia in the late 1860s. Among Hoen's earliest Richmond jobs was the printing of Southern currency near the end of the Civil War. In the newer Richmond plant the quality of inks and paper stock, as well as the multi-layer lithography process itself saw great advances, to the point where most Hoen-produced covers and cigar boxes from the 1890s forward still retain their original hues after more than a century. Hoen used the five color multi-layer process for his printing. The British American Tobacco has been in business since 1902 as a joint venture between the UK’s Imperial Tobacco Company and the American Tobacco Company founded by James ‘Buck’ Duke. Despite its name, derived from the home bases of its two founding companies, British American Tobacco was established to trade outside both the UK and the USA and grew to cover Africa, Asia, Latin America and Continental Europe.

TOBACCO LABEL. Calvert. ca. 1900.
Zimmer & Co. Petersburg, VA. U.S.A. Lower left: The Calvert Lith. Co. Detroit. Image is 10”w x 10”h. Colored lithograph. Image in very good condition. This label is probably a leftover copy printed during the 1900s. Such labels were pasted on crates (also called caddies) or barrels of tobacco.

This tobacco label depicts a young blue-eyed girl with a lake in the background and flowers in the foreground. The tobacco brand is not identified.

Thomas Calvert immigrated from England in 1849 and the founded his first graphic arts firm in Philadelphia in 1852. He incorporated “The Calvert Lithographing, Engraving and Map Publishing Company” in 1867, a firm that was to dominate the lithographic market in Detroit. By the 1880s it had become one of the largest lithographers in the U.S., employing over 300 people. In 1897 the legal name of the company was changed to “Calvert Lithography Company”. The firm continued long after Calvert’s death in 1900 and sometime after 1960 was taken over by a Canadian firm.

TOBACCO PLANT. Winterbotham. THE FIRST COLOR PLATE PUBLISHED IN AMERICAN BOOK. 1795/1799.
Tobacco Plant. 4 ½”w x 7 ¼”h. Right edge chipped, but not into image . Image very good. Original hand color.

Published in W. Winterbotham, An Historical, Geographical, Commercial, and Philosophical View of the United States…. 2nd edition. London: H.D. Symonds, 1799. Howe’s W581.

This is the rare hand-colored tobacco plate from Volume III, opposite page 427. This plate of the tobacco plant is the first color plate published in an American book.

ELM TREE. Strutt. 1823.
Wych Elm at Bagot’s Mill. Lower left in plate margin: J. G. Strutt 1823. 14 ¼”w x 11”h. Etching. Foxing in margins. Colored. Mounted on a 21”w x 14 ½”h page of the following book.

From Jacob George Strutt, Sylva Britannica, or Portraits of Forest Trees, Distinguished for Their Antiquity, Magnitude, or Beauty. Drawn from Nature. Various editions, 1822, 1826. 1830 and 1838. Bagot’s Mill was located in Blithfield, Staffordshire, England.

Jacob George Strutt (1784-1867) was painter and etcher, not a botanical draftsman. He studied in London, and was a contributor to the Royal Academy and British Institution at intervals between 1819 and 1858. For a few years he practiced portrait-painting, but from 1824 to 1831 exhibited studies of forest scenery, and he is now best known by two sets of etchings which he published at this period Sylva Britannica, or Portraits of Forest Trees distinguished for their Antiquity (1822, 1826, 1830 and reissued 1838), from which this print was removed, and Deliciae Sylvarum; or, Grand and Romantic Forest Scenery in England and Scotland (1828). About 1831 Strutt went abroad, and, after living for a time in Lausanne, settled in Rome producing landscapes of the Italian countryside. In 1851 he returned to England, but was not active after 1858.

YEW TREE. Strutt. 1823.
The Yew Trees at Fountains Abbey. Lower left in plate margin: J. G. Strutt 1823. 14 ½”w x 11 ½”h. Etching. Foxing in margins. Colored. Mounted on 21"w x 14 1/2"h page from the following book.

From Jacob George Strutt, Sylva Britannica, or Portraits of Forest Trees, Distinguished for Their Antiquity, Magnitude, or Beauty. Drawn from Nature. Various editions, 1822, 1826. 1830 and 1838. Fountain's Abbey was located in Ripon, Yorkshire, England.

Strutt (1784-1867) was a landscape painter and etcher rather than a botanical draftsman in the strict sense. He was essentially a delineator of forest scenes rather than tree anatomy. He studied in London and was a contributor to the Royal Academy and the Society of British Artists. From 1824 to 1831 he exhibited studies of forest scenery and was best known for two sets of etchings, Sylva Britannica, from which this print came, and Grand and Romantic Forest Scenery in England and Scotland. Later he moved to Rome and produced landscapes of the Italian countryside.

COMETS & CONSTELLATIONS. Lubienietzki. 1668.
Figuras tabula uranoscopica, exhibens orbitas duorum istorum insignium Cometarium ... 1665 ... Henricus Ad ejusdem. 13 ½”w x 10”h. Beautifully colored with gold stars. Partially remargined.

Published in Lubienietzki, Theatrum Cometicum, Duabus Partibus constans, quarum altera frequenti Senatu Philosophico conspicua, Cometa anni 1664 et 1665. Amsterdam: Franciscus Cuperus, 1668.

Stanislaus Lubienietzki (1623-1675) was a Polish historian, astronomer and writer. His 968-page book Theatrum Cometicum (The Theatre of Comets) includes 81 engravings and provides accounts for 415 comet sightings from biblical times to 1665. The crater “Lubiniezky” on the Moon is named in his honor.

At the upper left is “Coma Berenic”, a constellation in the northern sky near “Leo” that contains a prominent cluster of galaxies and the north pole of the Milky Way. It is called “Berenice's Hair” for Berenice, a queen of Egypt who promised her hair to Venus.

Below the Equator is the track of a comet observed from Hamburg, Germany passing “Corvus” on 22 November 1664 and “Canis Major” on 18 December 1664. The position is plotted for each day of that period.

The small constellation, “Corvus”, the Crow, was called the Raven by ancient Greeks. The story goes that Apollo sent the raven (crow) to collect water in the nearby cup, “Crater”, as shown on the map. But the bird wasted its time eating figs. Then, as an excuse for losing time, it gathered up the Water Snake (“Hydra”) in its claws and flew back, telling Apollo that this creature was the reason for its delay. Apollo would have none of it, and threw all three: the crow, the goblet, and the water snake, into the heavens. For penance, the crow was made to suffer eternal thirst (and this makes the bird caw raucously instead of sing like normal birds).

“Canis Major” is said to represent one of the dogs following “Orion” the hunter. “Canis Major” contains “Sirius”, the brightest star besides the Sun, Moon, Jupiter, and Venus as seen from Earth. “Sirius” is also one of the nearest. The star's name means “scorching”, since the summer heat occurred just after Sirius' rising past the sun. The Ancient Greeks referred to such times in the summer as “dog days”, as only dogs would be mad enough to go out in the heat, leading to the star being known as the “Dog Star”. Consequently, the constellation was named the “Big Dog”.

COMETS & CONSTELLATIONS. Doppelmayr/Homann. Published 1729 or 1742.
Globi Coelestis In Tabulas Planas Redacti Pars III in qua Longitudines Stellarum fixarum ad añum Christi completum 1730 tam Arithmetice quam Geometrice exhibentur â Ioh. Gabr. Doppelmayr... Opera Ioh. Bapt. Homanni Sac. Caes. Maj. Geogr. Norimbergae.

19”h x 23”w. Full color. Gilt.

This astronomical chart was first published in Volume 1 of Reiner Ottens (1698-1750), Atlas Maior cum generales omnium totius orbis regnorum.... (Amsterdam: sons of Joachim Ottens, with maps dated from 1641 to 1729.) See Phillips. This chart was more likely published in Atlas Coelestis in quo Mundus Spectabilis, (Nuremberg: Homann’s Heirs, 1742). Compiled by Johann Gabriel Doppelmayr (1677-1750) and engraved by Johann Baptist Homann (1664-1724) sometime between 1716 and 1724.

This atlas is considered Doppelmayr’s best-known astronomical work. Doppelmayr was an astronomer, cartographer, writer, mathematics professor and translator in Nuremberg. He collaborated with Homann to create a number of maps eventually published as indicated above. Ten of the thirty plates published in Atlas Coelestis are star charts. Six of these charts, including the present chart are “gnomonic” projections. In the gnomonic projection any straight line drawn on the chart is part of a great circle. The present chart (Pars III) is illustrated in Whitfield.

The chart is centered on the Equator. Constellations are shown positioned for the year 1730, mostly as figures according to classical mythology, but two are non-Ptolemaic constellations: Columba and Monoceros. Other constellations shown include: Canis Major, Lynx, Tigris, Gemini, Cancer, Hydra and Procyon. Paths of comets, year observed and name of observers such as Cassini and Hevelius are depicted. The chart is flanked by lists of the constellations.

Phillips, List of Atlases, 4257, Vol. 1, No. 7. Indicating only few copies were placed on the market.

Whitfield, The Mapping of the Heavens, pages 82-83.

FLAGS. Sinclair. ca. 1850.
A Chart of National Flags. Published by Henry Bill. New York. T. Sinclair's Lith Philad'a. 18"h x 21"w. Color. Excellent condition. Lithograph by Thomas Sinclair, Philadelphia.

Shows 105 flags, mostly national flags and a few merchant and pilot's flags. In the 1850s Italy was being created from several kingdoms, states and cities; many of their flags are shown. Similarly, in the early 1800s German states formed the Germanic Confederation; the German Empire was created at the close of the Franco-Prussian war in 1871. Thus, several flags of German states and cities are shown. The flag of the Ionian Republic has the Union Jack in the upper left and a winged lion in the field. The Ionian Islands were a British protectorate during 1815 to 1864.

INSTRUMENTS. Diderot. c1776.
Eighteen sheets of instruments and related geometry. From Denis Diderot’s (1713-1784) famous Encyclopédie ou dictionnaire raisonné des sciences, des arts et des métiers (Encyclopedia or Systematic Dictionary of Sciences, Arts and Trades), commonly called the Encyclopédie. It was published in increments during the period 1751 to 1772. Supplements were published in 1776 through 1780. Image size approximately 8” w x 13”h on sheets 10 ¾”w x 16 ½”h.

Astronomie [Astronomy]. Eight sheets, sequentially numbered: “Suppl. Pl. 1 [through 8]”, showing astronomical instruments and related spherical geometry. Engraved by Benard.

Gnomonique [Gnomon – (Dialing)]. Six sheets (Plates 2-7) related to telling time by the use of shadows. Most of the instruments are illustrated in their inclined position to show that latitude must be considered when measuring time by the sun. Included are geometric figures illustrating how the devices were showing time.

The original meanings of “dial” were “sundial” and “clock dial”, from Latin dialis = "pertaining to or belonging to Jupiter” or “of one day”, because of its use in telling the time of day. Today the term often refers to mechanical devices such as sundials, clock dials, or the circular display of clocks and watches. The term “dial” is also used for a circular display device in radio, measuring instruments, etc. Even “dial a telephone number” comes from the dial on rotary phones until the advent of the keypad. Engraved by Benard.

Géographie [Geography]. Three sheets showing globes, globe gores, and related spherical geometry. Drawn and engraved by Benard.

Navigation. One sheet (“Pl. 1.”) showing instruments and related spherical and plane geometry. Drawn by Groussier. Engraved by Benard.

NEWSPAPER. New-York Times. 1865.
The New-York Times. Imprint: Vol. XV......No. 4400. New York. Wednesday, November 1, 1865. Price Five Cents.

Eight pages. The first page contains ¾ column “Important from Europe”, 3 ¼ columns “American Topics” , 1/4 column “Terrible Gale at Sea” describing a hurricane in the Florida Keys, ½ column “The Russian-American Telegraph” and ¼ column “Release of John Mitchell”. This latter is a significant event in Irish History.

John Mitchell (1815-1875) was a journalist, revolutionary, and historian born in Ireland. He had been released from prison in the U.S. by President Johnson after pleas from the Fenian Brotherhood in 1865. The Fenian Brotherhood traces its origins back to 1798 and the United Irishmen, who began as an open political organization only to be suppressed. It later became a secret revolutionary organization and rose in rebellion, seeking an end to British rule in Ireland and the establishment of an Irish Republic. The rebellion was suppressed, but the principles of the United Irishmen had a powerful influence on the course of Irish history. While still in Ireland, in 1843 Mitchell began to write for The Nation, and in 1847 he became its editor. His militancy alienated many moderate nationalists, however, and he left to found The United Irishman. He was shipped by the British to Van Diemen's Land (Tasmania) for treason-felony in May 1848. He wrote His Jail Journal, or Five Years in British Prisons (1854); it became a central text of Irish nationalism. He escaped to the United States in 1853 where he led a turbulent and contentious career as a journalist, editing the proslavery journal Citizen (1854–55) in New York City and the Richmond Enquirer during the Civil War. After a short imprisonment (1865) for his Confederate activities, he was released by President Johnson and became the acknowledged leader of the Irish-American nationalists.

NEWSPAPER. PETERSBURG, VA. 1869.
The Daily Express.

Petersburg: T. Jefferson Clark, June 12, 1869. Four pages. Seven columns. Toned.

News of the day from as far away as Europe. Advertising: gold at $1.38; firkins of butter; tierces of prime Leaf Lard; Lea & Perrin’s Worcestershire sauce; and many other items to stimulate your palate.

BIRD PLATE. Martinet. 1768.
Histoire Naturelle. Lower left: Martinet del. Lower right: Benard Fecit. 13”h x 8”w. Upper right corner: Pl. XXXVIII. Hand colored engraving by Robert Benard after François Nicolas Martinet (1731-c1790). Scale in “Pouces” (English inches) incorporated in the image.

Four birds, realistically posed, on one plate:

Fig. 1. Ara Bleu du Bresil. (Blue and yellow Macaw)
Fig. 2. Kakaloes. (Cockatoo)
Fig. 3. Perruche Rouge D’Amboine. (Parrot.)
Fig. 4. Lory des Philippines. (Lory.)

Published in the l'Encyclopédie, ou Dictionnaire Raisonné des Sciences, des Arts et des Métiers, edited by Denis Diderot (1713-1784) and Jean le Rond d'Alembert (1717-1783). The first volume of text was published in 1751. Six others followed at approximately yearly intervals until 1757. The last 10 were published in 1765. The 11 volumes of plates were published during the period 1762 to 1772. These were followed in 1776-1777 by four volumes of supplementary text and one volume of plates. The two-volume index was published in 1780. All together there were 35 volumes with 23 volumes of text containing 72,000 articles written by 140 authors plus 12 volumes of some 2900 plates.

The plate volumes were titled: Recueil de Planches, Sur les Sciences, les Arts Libéraux, et les Arts Méchaniques, avec Leur Explication. The plate described above is from the “Sixieme Volume” of plates, published in 1768.

François Nicolas Martinet (1731-c1790) illustrated birds in books by some of the most influential ornithologists in 18th-century France. He had been trained as an engineer and draftsman. Illustrating books appears to have begun as a secondary profession, for which he is now famous. Toward the end of his career, Martinet drew upon his experience in engraving birds for others to publish his own ornithology books, producing plates until his death sometime in the late 1780s or early 1790s (sources disagree on the year).

BIRD PLATE. Martinet. 1768.
Histoire Naturelle. Lower left: Martinet del. Lower right: Benard Fecit. 13”h x 8”w. Upper right corner: Pl. XXX. Engraving on laid paper. Engraved by Robert Benard after François Nicolas Martinet (1731-c1790). Scale in “Pieds” (English feet) incorporated in the image.

Four birds, realistically posed, on one plate:

Fig. 1. L’Autruche. (Austrich.)
Fig. 2. Le Casoar. (Southern Cassowary.)
Fig. 3. Le Pélican. (Pelican.)
Fig. 4. Le Flamant. (Flamingo.)

Published in the l'Encyclopédie, ou Dictionnaire Raisonné des Sciences, des Arts et des Métiers, edited by Denis Diderot (1713-1784) and Jean le Rond d'Alembert (1717-1783). The first volume of text was published in 1751. Six others followed at approximately yearly intervals until 1757. The last 10 were published in 1765. The 11 volumes of plates were published during the period 1762 to 1772. These were followed in 1776-1777 by four volumes of supplementary text and one volume of plates. The two-volume index was published in 1780. All together there were 35 volumes with 23 volumes of text containing 72,000 articles written by 140 authors plus 12 volumes of some 2900 plates. Originally sold by subscription, the Encyclopédie went through several editions with about 4,500 copies sold.

The plate volumes were titled: Recueil de Planches, Sur les Sciences, les Arts Libéraux, et les Arts Méchaniques, avec Leur Explication. The plate described above is from the “Sixieme Volume” of plates, published in 1768.

François Nicolas Martinet (1731-c1790) illustrated birds in books by some of the most influential ornithologists in 18th-century France. He had been trained as an engineer and draftsman. Illustrating books appears to have begun as a secondary profession, for which he is now famous. Toward the end of his career, Martinet drew upon his experience in engraving birds for others to publish his own ornithology books, producing plates until his death sometime in the late 1780s or early 1790s (sources disagree on the year).

BIRD PLATE. Martinet. 1768.
Histoire Naturelle. Lower left: Martinet del. Lower right: Benard Fecit. 13”h x 8”w. Upper right corner: Pl. XLIII. Hand colored engraving on laid paper. Engraved by Robert Benard after François Nicolas Martinet (1731-c1790). Scales in “Pouces” [inches] incorporated in the image.

Four birds, realistically posed, on one plate:

Fig. 1. Gobe – Mouche Hupé de Madagascar. (Flycatcher of Madagascar.)
Fig. 2. Le Pique – Bœuf. (Red-Billed Oxpecker)
Fig. 3. Etourneau du Cap de Bonn Espérance. (Starling of the Cape of Good Hope.)
Fig. 4. Paon de Mer. (Sea Peacock.)

Published in thel'Encyclopédie, ou Dictionnaire Raisonné des Sciences, des Arts et des Métiers, edited by Denis Diderot (1713-1784) and Jean le Rond d'Alembert (1717-1783). The first volume of text was published in 1751. Six others followed at approximately yearly intervals until 1757. The last 10 were published in 1765. The 11 volumes of plates were published during the period 1762 to 1772. These were followed in 1776-1777 by four volumes of supplementary text and one volume of plates. The two-volume index was published in 1780. All together there were 35 volumes with 23 volumes of text containing 72,000 articles written by 140 authors plus 12 volumes of some 2900 plates.

The plate volumes were titled: Recueil de Planches, Sur les Sciences, les Arts Libéraux, et les Arts Méchaniques, avec Leur Explication. The plate described above is from the “Sixieme Volume” of plates, published in 1768.

François Nicolas Martinet (1731-c1790) illustrated birds in books by some of the most influential ornithologists in 18th-century France. He had been trained as an engineer and draftsman. Illustrating books appears to have begun as a secondary profession, for which he is now famous. Toward the end of his career, Martinet drew upon his experience in engraving birds for others to publish his own ornithology books, producing plates until his death sometime in the late 1780s or early 1790s (sources disagree on the year).

BIRD PLATE. Cuckoos. Martinet. c1768.
Histoire Naturelle. Lower left: Martinet del. Lower right: Benard Fecit. 13”h x 8”w. Upper right corner: Pl. XLI. Hand-colored engraving on laid paper. Engraved by Robert Benard after François Nicolas Martinet (1731-c1790). Scale in “Pouces” [inches] incorporated in the image.

Four birds, realistically posed, on one plate:

Fig. 1. Le Barbu de Cayenne. (Barbet of French Guiana.) Fig. 2. Le Coucou Bleu de la Chine. (Blue Cuckoo of China.) Fig. 3. Le Couroucou Verd de Cayenne. (GreenTrogon.) Note: The South American Couroucou, or Trogon curucui, is the smallest bird in the world other than the humming bird family. Fig. 4. Le Bout de Petun. (Razor-billed Blackbird.)

Published in the l'Encyclopédie, ou Dictionnaire Raisonné des Sciences, des Arts et des Métiers, edited by Denis Diderot (1713-1784) and Jean le Rond d'Alembert (1717-1783). The first volume of text was published in 1751. Six others followed at approximately yearly intervals until 1757. The last 10 were published in 1765. The 11 volumes of plates were published during the period 1762 to 1772. These were followed in 1776-1777 by four volumes of supplementary text and one volume of plates. The two-volume index was published in 1780. All together there were 35 volumes with 23 volumes of text containing 72,000 articles written by 140 authors plus 12 volumes of some 2900 plates. Approximately 4,500 copies of the Encyclopédie were sold.

The plate volumes were titled: Recueil de Planches, Sur les Sciences, les Arts Libéraux, et les Arts Méchaniques, avec Leur Explication. The plate described above is from the “Sixieme Volume” of plates, published in 1768.

François Nicolas Martinet illustrated birds in books by some of the most influential ornithologists in 18th-century France. He had been trained as an engineer and draftsman. Illustrating books appears to have begun as a secondary profession, for which he is now famous. Toward the end of his career, Martinet drew upon his experience in engraving birds for others to publish his own ornithology books, producing plates until his death sometime in the late 1780s or early 1790s (sources disagree on the year).

BIRD PLATE. Martinet. 1768.
Histoire Naturelle. Lower left: Martinet del. Lower right: Benard Fecit. 13”h x 8”w. Upper right corner: Pl. XLIX. Engraving on laid paper. Hand colored engraving by Robert Benard after François Nicolas Martinet (1731-c1790). Scale in “Pouces” (English inches) incorporated in the image.

Four birds, realistically posed, on one plate:

Fig. 1. Le Grand Plongeon Tacheté. (Mottled Diving Duck.)
Fig. 2. L’Eider Mâle. (Male Eider Duck.)
Fig. 3. Le Fou de l’Isle de Java. (Loon of Java; Brown Booby.)
Fig. 4. Le Cormoran. (Cormorant.)

Published in the l'Encyclopédie, ou Dictionnaire Raisonné des Sciences, des Arts et des Métiers, edited by Denis Diderot (1713-1784) and Jean le Rond d'Alembert (1717-1783). The first volume of text was published in 1751. Six others followed at approximately yearly intervals until 1757. The last 10 were published in 1765. The 11 volumes of plates were published during the period 1762 to 1772. These were followed in 1776-1777 by four volumes of supplementary text and one volume of plates. The two-volume index was published in 1780. All together there were 35 volumes with 23 volumes of text containing 72,000 articles written by 140 authors plus 12 volumes of some 2900 plates.

The plate volumes were titled: Recueil de Planches, Sur les Sciences, les Arts Libéraux, et les Arts Méchaniques, avec Leur Explication. The plate described above is from the “Sixieme Volume” of plates, published in 1768.

François Nicolas Martinet (1731-c1790) illustrated birds in books by some of the most influential ornithologists in 18th-century France. He had been trained as an engineer and draftsman. Illustrating books appears to have begun as a secondary profession, for which he is now famous. Toward the end of his career, Martinet drew upon his experience in engraving birds for others to publish his own ornithology books, producing plates until his death sometime in the late 1780s or early 1790s (sources disagree on the year).

BIRD PLATE. Martinet. 1768.
Histoire Naturelle. Lower left: Martinet del. Lower right: Benard Fecit. 13”h x 8”w. Upper right corner: Pl. XLVIII. Engraving on laid paper. Hand colored engraving by Robert Benard after François Nicolas Martinet (1731-c1790). Scale in “Pouces” (English inches) incorporated in the image.

Four birds, realistically posed, on one plate:

Fig. 1. Le Grébe Hupé. (Crested Grebe)
Fig. 2. Le Guillemot. (Guillemot, a seabird in the auk family.)
Fig. 3. Le Macareux. (Puffin).
Fig. 4. Le Pingoin. (Penguin).

Published in the l'Encyclopédie, ou Dictionnaire Raisonné des Sciences, des Arts et des Métiers, edited by Denis Diderot (1713-1784) and Jean le Rond d'Alembert (1717-1783). The first volume of text was published in 1751. Six others followed at approximately yearly intervals until 1757. The last 10 were published in 1765. The 11 volumes of plates were published during the period 1762 to 1772. These were followed in 1776-1777 by four volumes of supplementary text and one volume of plates. The two-volume index was published in 1780. All together there were 35 volumes with 23 volumes of text containing 72,000 articles written by 140 authors plus 12 volumes of some 2900 plates.

The plate volumes were titled: Recueil de Planches, Sur les Sciences, les Arts Libéraux, et les Arts Méchaniques, avec Leur Explication. The plate described above is from the “Sixieme Volume” of plates, published in 1768.

François Nicolas Martinet (1731-c1790) illustrated birds in books by some of the most influential ornithologists in 18th-century France. He had been trained as an engineer and draftsman. Illustrating books appears to have begun as a secondary profession, for which he is now famous. Toward the end of his career, Martinet drew upon his experience in engraving birds for others to publish his own ornithology books, producing plates until his death sometime in the late 1780s or early 1790s (sources disagree on the year).

BIRD PLATE. Martinet. 1768.
Histoire Naturelle. Lower left: Martinet del. Lower right: Benard Fecit. 13”h x 8”w. Upper right corner: Pl. XXXII. Hand colored engraving on laid paper. Engraved by Robert Benard after François Nicolas Martinet (1731-c1790).

Four birds, realistically posed, on one plate:

Fig. 1. Pie – Grieche de Madagascar. (Shrike.)
Fig. 2. Tangara Cardinal du Bresil. (Tanager Cardinal of Brazil.)
Fig. 3. La Veuve a Quatre Brins. (Shift-tailed Bunting.)
Fig. 4. Manakin de Cayenne. Manakin.

Published in the l'Encyclopédie, ou Dictionnaire Raisonné des Sciences, des Arts et des Métiers,, edited by Denis Diderot (1713-1784) and Jean le Rond d'Alembert (1717-1783). The first volume of text was published in 1751. Six others followed at approximately yearly intervals until 1757. The last 10 were published in 1765. The 11 volumes of plates were published during the period 1762 to 1772. These were followed in 1776-1777 by four volumes of supplementary text and one volume of plates. The two-volume index was published in 1780. All together there were 35 volumes with 23 volumes of text containing 72,000 articles written by 140 authors plus 12 volumes of some 2900 plates.

The plate volumes were titled: Recueil de Planches, Sur les Sciences, les Arts Libéraux, et les Arts Méchaniques, avec Leur Explication. The plate described above is from the “Sixieme Volume” of plates, published in 1768.

François Nicolas Martinet (1731-c1790) illustrated birds in books by some of the most influential ornithologists in 18th-century France. He had been trained as an engineer and draftsman. Illustrating books appears to have begun as a secondary profession, for which he is now famous. Toward the end of his career, Martinet drew upon his experience in engraving birds for others to publish his own ornithology books, producing plates until his death sometime in the late 1780s or early 1790s (sources disagree on the year).

BIRD PLATE. Martinet. 1768.
Histoire Naturelle. Lower left: Martinet del. Lower right: Benard Fecit. 13”h x 8”w. Upper right corner: Pl. L. Engraving on laid paper. Engraved by Robert Benard after François Nicolas Martinet (1731-c1790). Scale in “Pouces” [inches] incorporated in the image.

Four birds, realistically posed, on one plate:

Fig. 1. Piette Mâle.
Fig. 2. Le Canard Siffleur.
Fig. 3. Le Pétrel.
Fig. 4. Le Puffin.

Published in the l'Encyclopédie, ou Dictionnaire Raisonné des Sciences, des Arts et des Métiers, edited by Denis Diderot (1713-1784) and Jean le Rond d'Alembert (1717-1783). The first volume of text was published in 1751. Six others followed at approximately yearly intervals until 1757. The last 10 were published in 1765. The 11 volumes of plates were published during the period 1762 to 1772. These were followed in 1776-1777 by four volumes of supplementary text and one volume of plates. The two-volume index was published in 1780. All together there were 35 volumes with 23 volumes of text containing 72,000 articles written by 140 authors plus 12 volumes of some 2900 plates.

The plate volumes were titled: Recueil de Planches, Sur les Sciences, les Arts Libéraux, et les Arts Méchaniques, avec Leur Explication. The plate described above is from the “Sixieme Volume” of plates, published in 1768.

François Nicolas Martinet illustrated birds in books by some of the most influential ornithologists in 18th-century France. He had been trained as an engineer and draftsman. Illustrating books appears to have begun as a secondary profession, for which he is now famous. Toward the end of his career, Martinet drew upon his experience in engraving birds for others to publish his own ornithology books, producing plates until his death sometime in the late 1780s or early 1790s (sources disagree on the year).

BIRD PLATE. Martinet. 1768.
Histoire Naturelle. Lower left: Martinet del. Lower right: Benard Fecit. 13”h x 8”w. Upper right corner: Pl. XL. Hand colored engraving on laid paper. Engraved by Robert Benard after François Nicolas Martinet (1731-c1790). Scales in “Pouces” (English inches) incorporated in the image.

Four birds, realistically posed, on one plate:

Fig. 1. Pigeon Verd D’Amboine. (Pigeon)
. Fig. 2. Le Coq de Roche. (Cock of the Rock .)
Fig. 3. Barge Brune. (Brown Barge)
Fig. 4. La Grande Foulque. (The Greater Coot.)

Published in the l'Encyclopédie, ou Dictionnaire Raisonné des Sciences, des Arts et des Métiers, edited by Denis Diderot (1713-1784) and Jean le Rond d'Alembert (1717-1783). The first volume of text was published in 1751. Six others followed at approximately yearly intervals until 1757. The last 10 were published in 1765. The 11 volumes of plates were published during the period 1762 to 1772. These were followed in 1776-1777 by four volumes of supplementary text and one volume of plates. The two-volume index was published in 1780. All together there were 35 volumes with 23 volumes of text containing 72,000 articles written by 140 authors plus 12 volumes of some 2900 plates.

The plate volumes were titled: Recueil de Planches, Sur les Sciences, les Arts Libéraux, et les Arts Méchaniques, avec Leur Explication. The plate described above is from the “Sixieme Volume” of plates, published in 1768.

François Nicolas Martinet (1731-c1790) illustrated birds in books by some of the most influential ornithologists in 18th-century France. He had been trained as an engineer and draftsman. Illustrating books appears to have begun as a secondary profession, for which he is now famous. Toward the end of his career, Martinet drew upon his experience in engraving birds for others to publish his own ornithology books, producing plates until his death sometime in the late 1780s or early 1790s (sources disagree on the year).