Anas acuta foemina, Northern Pintail Female with Egg by Nozeman & Sepp, 1789

Anas acuta foemina - Antique Northern Pintail Female with Egg by Nozeman and Sepp 1789

This finely hand-coloured copperplate engraving depicts the female Northern Pintail (Anas acuta) with an inset of the characteristic pale egg. The artist captures the elegant long neck, subtly mottled brown plumage and pointed tail as the bird stands on a grassy bank, an accurate, decorative study of a widely distributed migratory duck that breeds across northern Europe, Asia and North America and winters far to the south.

From Nederlandsche Vogelen, volgens hunne huisdouding, aert, en eigenschappen beschreeven (Amsterdam, 1770–1829), the landmark first comprehensive survey of Dutch birds by Cornelis Nozeman, Martinus Houttuyn and the Sepp family. Responsible for its beautifully engraved and hand-colored plates. It was the first Dutch project to depict and describe all native birds, often rendered close to life size and set within their natural habitats, with accompanying descriptive texts.

Condition: Very good; clean sheet with mild, even age toning and a strong plate impression. With wrinkles mainly outside the plate mark. The left edge shows slight irregularities. Please study images carefully.

Framing tips: A warm ivory mount complements the earth tones of the hen; pair with a mid-brown walnut or ebonised frame for a classic natural-history presentation. Use UV-protective glazing to preserve the hand colour.

Overall size: 36 x 53 cm.

Image size: 0.001 x 31.8 x 38.5 cm.