ALBUM OF DRAWINGS – NATURAL HISTORY - 18th CENTURY: 63 BEAUTIFUL & CURIOUS DRAWINGS

[ 18th CENTURY - ALBUM OF DRAWINGS – NATURAL HISTORY

63 BEAUTIFUL & CURIOUS DRAWINGS ]

[ NATURAL HISTORY]

Album of drawings,

8vo, cardboard. 63 plates of drawings (126 pp.)

This beautiful album contains 63 plates of pencil drawings of animals - including large full-page drawings.

Some of these drawings were "sketched from nature" as the author indicates "made by me from nature" and others obviously after natural history books. The title indicates moreover: "Supplément de différents morceaux détachées de l'histoire naturelle prises dans leuvre (sic) de Mr Pluche, et différente étude d'animaux tant quadrupède que (...) fait par moy daprès nature et autres composent 137 dessins". 26 drawings with annotations in front of each other. The handwritten pagination here indicates 137 p., We have 126 : missing pp. 63-70 and 73-74. Charming and curious album of 18th century drawings.

In addition to drawings of insects, butterflies, birds, parrots, ostriches, tigers and peacocks, there are curious & lively figures of dogs and cats.

Inventory of drawings

p. 1. Insects (insects and flowers)

p. 3. Insects (3 specimens)

p. 5. Insects (including damselflies).

p. 7. Spiders

p. 9. Wasps

p. 11. bees

p. 13. Gnats

p. 15. Gnats and other insects

p. 17. insects

p. 19. The great bee-eater from the outside

p. 21 and 23. The great bee-eater: the top of one of the floors (2 pl.)

p. 25. The caterpillars

p. 27. The caterpillars

p. 29. Moths

p. 31. Moths

p. 33. Moths and butterflies

p. 35. Butterflies by day

p. 37. Butterflies

p. 39. Moths

p. 41. Silkworms

p. 43. Anteaters

p. 45. Birds (woodpeckers, owls, swans)

p. 47. Birds (curlew, woodcock, toucan, heron)

p. 49. The passion flower (grenadilla).

p. 51 and 53. Carnation and its root

p. 55. The different parts of flowers

p. 57. Seeds

p. 59. Inside plants

p. 61. Inside plants

p. 71. Huant cat

p. 75. Bird of prey

p. 77. Pigeon of the beautiful species

p. 79. Mule

p. 81. Tiger

p. 83. Hunting dogs

p. 85. Spaniel

p. 87. Canary

p. 89. Bullfinch

p. 91. Goldfinch

p. 93. Goldfinch

p. 95. Fat goldfinch

p. 97. Foreign sparrow

p. 99. Bullfinch

p. 101. Foreign sparrow

p. 103. White, red and black foreign

red and black

p. 105. Red macaw per(r)oquet

p. 107. Love-colored and black Per(r)oquet

p. 109. Per(r)oquet aurora color (?) and green

p. 111. The pa(o)n

p. 113. Ostrich

p. 115. The eagle

p. 117. The hummingbird

p. 119. The female hummingbird

p. 121. Goldfinch

p. 123. Glass finches

p. 125. Yellow finch

p. 127. Loving glasswort

p. 129. Serin

p. 129. Serin

p. 131. Lesser canary

p. 133. Small cat angry with a dog

p. 135. Dog angry with a cat

A charming and curious album of drawings, revealing a late 18th-century amateur's view of the natural history of his time.