Rothschild's Extinct Birds - Volume with 44 Originally Colored Lithographs

Artist or Author: Walter Rothschild

Work: Extinct Birds

Date of Publication: 1907

Style: Volume with 44 Originally Colored Lithographs

Paper Size: ~ 15 1/4 by 12"

Condition: The work is in good to excellent condition overall. There may be a few minor imperfections to be expected with age. There is some foxing to the text leaves. Please review the image carefully for condition and contact us with any questions.

Description of the work: This rare volume with 45 chromolithographs is from Lionel Walter Rothschild's Extinct Birds. The work was published by Hutchinson & Co. in London in 1907. The work was a limited edition of 300 of which 280 sets were ever for sale.

Included in the work are 45 color chromolithographs. The volume bound in three quarter green marbled leather, with a gilt raised spine. The top edges of the pages are gilt. Noted artists contributed to the work including John G. Keulemans, George Edward Lodge, Joseph Smit, and Frederick William Frohawk.

The work was important for it raising awareness of the extinction of species. It combined prehistoric extinctions with those of recent history. Rothschild noted "The cause of recent extinction among birds is in most cases due directly or indirectly to man, but we also have instances of birds becoming extinct for no apparent reason whatever."

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