Antique Natural HistoryOriginal plates from the naturalists' books, 1600s to 1900s
The White-Bellied Caribbean Martin, An 1807 Ornithological Illustration
The White-Bellied Caribbean Martin, An 1807 Ornithological Illustration, view 2
The White-Bellied Caribbean Martin, An 1807 Ornithological Illustration, view 3
The White-Bellied Caribbean Martin, An 1807 Ornithological Illustration, view 4

Close-ups

The White-Bellied Caribbean Martin, An 1807 Ornithological Illustration, close-up 1The White-Bellied Caribbean Martin, An 1807 Ornithological Illustration, close-up 2The White-Bellied Caribbean Martin, An 1807 Ornithological Illustration, close-up 3The White-Bellied Caribbean Martin, An 1807 Ornithological Illustration, close-up 4The White-Bellied Caribbean Martin, An 1807 Ornithological Illustration, close-up 5

Framed and on the wall

The White-Bellied Caribbean Martin, An 1807 Ornithological Illustration, shown framedThe White-Bellied Caribbean Martin, An 1807 Ornithological Illustration, shown framed on a wallThe White-Bellied Caribbean Martin, An 1807 Ornithological Illustration, shown framed in a room

Frame and rooms are illustrations of how the print could look; the description says what is included.

The White-Bellied Caribbean Martin, An 1807 Ornithological Illustration

€490 ($550, £415, €490)

Period original, not a reproduction.

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Date
1807
Size
20.3 × 13.5 in (51.5 × 34.4 cm)
Condition
Good. General age-related toning. Minor wear and foxing, blank verso. Please study image carefully.
Period
Early 19th century
Section
Birds
Reference
f_39082502

Female white-bellied martin, an original hand-colored engraving titled "L'Hirondelle à ventre blanc, f.lle", from Louis Jean Pierre Vieillot's Histoire naturelle des oiseaux de l'Amérique septentrionale, published about 1807. The plate is lettered "pl. 29", and the credits below read "Prêtre pinx.", "Langlois imp." and "Bouquet sculp.", naming the painter, the printer and the engraver.

The bird perches on a twisted, lichen-covered branch, facing left, with a brown head and breast shading to a whitish belly. The back and wings are dark brown with a blue sheen at the shoulders, and the tail is dark blue and forked. It is drawn on an open cream sheet with a fine plate mark. The female of the species is duller than the male, which Vieillot shows on a separate plate.

The bird is the Caribbean martin, Progne dominicensis, a swallow of the West Indies, and the plate is the companion of the male on plate 28.