Jonston & Merians's Historiae Naturalis de Avibus - Volume with 62 Bird Engravings

Artist or Author: John Jonston

Work: Historiae Naturalis de Avibus

Date of Publication: 1650

Style: Volume with 62 Bird Engravings

Paper Size: ~ 13 1/4 by 8 1/4"

Condition: The work is in good to excellent condition overall. There may be some toned or foxed spots to the work. There may be a few minor imperfections or fox marks to be expected with age. Please review the image carefully for condition and contact us with any questions.

Description of the work: This volume featuring 62 copper bird engravings is Matthaeus Merian & John Jonston's Historiae Naturalis de Avibus or The Natural Histories of Birds. The volume was published by Matthaeus Merian in 1650 in Frankfurt.

The volumes are bound in full leather, gold gilt details, five raised bands. There are 62 engraved plates in this compilation. Matthias Merian completed the copper plate engravings after the original drawings of John Jonston.

John Jonston (1603-1675) was Polish scholar of Scottish descent. Hstudied medicine and natural sciences St. Andrews, Cambridge, and Leiden. He published major natural history studies, including Thaumatographia Naturalis in 1632. The work detailed knowledge of astronomy, paleontology, plants, animals and man. He also published Theatrum Universale Omnium Animalium in 1650. The plates for this work were after his own drawings and engraved by Matthuas Merian. The images were of a wide range of animal species. He was considered a polymath by his contemporaries.

Matthaeus Merian (1593-1650) was part of an exceptional artistic family. He was an artist and engraver himself that was born in Switzerland, and received training in engraving in Zurich, Nancy, Paris, and Strasbourg. He settled in Frankfurt where he worked for Johann Theodor de Bry, another accomplished publisher, and married his daughter, Maria Magdelena de Bry. He was the father of Matthaeus the Younger and the celebrated naturalist and artist, Maria Sibylla Merian. He took over De Bry's published house upon his death in 1623, and became particularly noted for his town views due to their artistry and accuracy. Merian also ran his own publishing house. He learned the art of copperplate engraving originally in Zurich, but travelled much of Europe improving upon his craft. The Merian family is celebrated for the many remarkable additions made to the knowledge of the natural world.

Provenance: Owned by Professor William Gardner Hale, top British authority on wading birds