John Gould Mammals of Australia, Hapalotis Mitchellii, Mitchell's Hopping Mouse, c1863

by Gould, John

John Gould Australian Marsupial Mouse with Kangaroo Paw. Antique print c1863 by John Gould and lithographer Henry Constantine Richter.

Original hand-coloured lithograph for Mammals of Australia published in London between 1845 and 1863 by John Gould (1804-1881). There were only 175 individually hand-coloured lithographs of each of the 182 different studies of Australian Mammals by John Gould (1804-1881). Gould devoted the last 50 years of his life to illustrating the birds of the world. Gould wrote that "It was not until I arrived in the country, and found myself surrounded by objects as strange as if I had been transported to another planet, that I conceived the idea of devoting a portion of my attention to the mammalian class of its extraordinary fauna."

During his short stay Gould made observations on Australia's fauna, and employed his skills as a taxidermist to obtain specimens. He sketched Australian mammals and birds and was greatly assisted by his artist wife Elizabeth Gould (1804-1841) in preparing the drawings for lithographs, so that these wonderful illustrations could be shared with the world.

In fine condition, with accompanying descriptive text, this lovely hand-coloured lithograph is full size as issued, 37 x 53cm (approximately 14.5 x 21 inches). This antique print is too large for our scanner (which produces the finest detailed image). If you would like further pics please let us know.