John Gould Superb Bird of Paradise, Lophorina Superba c1878-88.

by Gould, John

John Gould Lophorina Superba, Superb Bird-of-Paradise with orchid. This is a beautiful little bird that is found throughout rainforests of New Guinea.

Original hand-coloured lithograph by John Gould and William Matthew Hart for Gould's 'Birds of New Guinea and the adjacent Papuan Islands, including many new species recently discovered in Australia'. John Gould was known as 'The Bird Man'. He employed the finest lithographers of the day to create large hand-coloured lithographs that are some of the finest bird illustrations ever done. Gould had an excellent eye for detail, and closely supervised the work of his lithographers.

Birds of New Guinea and the Adjacent Papuan Islands was Gould’s last great work. Around 250 of each bird lithograph were published. The work was completed with the assistance of Gould's friend and associate Richard Bowdler Sharpe (1847-1909), who was in charge of the bird collection at the British Museum where he was Assistant Keeper of the Department of Zoology.

In good condition, with beautiful hand-colour, this is a closeup to show the fine detail of the bird and its habitat. The digital image does not do justice to this fine antique print. If you would like a picture of the full page, please email us. Size: 535 x 370mm (21 x 14.5 inches), as published.